Harry's Special Xmas
by nimbuschic
Summary: It’s almost Xmas and Harry has to make up his mind on what he really wants for Xmas this year...It all started with dreams, but judging by the looks of things, will his dreams become reality or will it make his Xmas even much complicated?H & HR :D
1. Chapter 1

**Harry's Special Xmas Holiday**

Hey.. Okok.I've been a bad bad girl.. my last story crash and burn because a newbie like me totally sucks in writing stories i must say. Pardon me fo rmy grammar mistakes coz English isnt my 1st language. Im from Asia and yes, im brushing up on my language by reading other stuff besides Harry Potter..hehehe.. ok, this story was written in the wee hours of the morning cos i was drunk on coffee from starbucks the night before with my friends and couldnt sleep... :) and this was born. The plot is somehow clear in my head and i hope to continue this NOTE: short fanfic BEFORE XMAS 2007 ya.. i dont celebrate Xmas. but, i like xmas trees. X)

okok. about my story this time... Harry tries to figure out those dreams he has been having. Happy dreams you know. not Lord Voldie ones. Happy dreams about a girl. A girl whom i think you all should know being Harry Potter fans.

Please excuse me for my lack of grammar skills. Im a newbie. If u say my story's bad..well.. i cant fulfil everyone's need ya.. enjoy.. (i hope).

Disclaimer: I wanna label these characters as my own but sadly, no... they dont belong to me.. JK rowling's brain created them,not mine.. :)

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

**Chapter 1**

The chill of the morning was something rather unexpected for Harry James Potter. His shivering body was the reason that woke him from his sweet,sweet dream. Sweet and totally inappropriate dreams. Ronald Weasly will surely kill him if he ever get a glimpse or even a sneak preview of all those images that runs through head. He gave a silent groan... Not that he was totally regretting all these dreams of course. In fact, the strength of these dreams was rather overwhelming for him; the emotions they invoked were particularly surprising for him. Not only that, it seems that these dreams were in fact driving all his nightmares and thoughts of Voldemort out of his brain which was quite surprising considering the fact that he has yet to master Occlumency taught to him reluctantly by that prat, Professor Severus Snape. And what was his dream about one may ask...

_I feel your fingers running through my hair_

_I hear breathing closely by my side_

_I see you looking with your beautiful eyes_

_There's nothing girl u girl you're one of a kind_

_Do you know what you mean to me_

_I'll give anything just to see you smile..._

_I'll always be there right by your side_

_U never should ever run or hide_

_Whenever u need me I will be waiting_

_To give you everything and more so..._

Harry looked out of his windows. It was still dark outside. The morning sun has yet to show itself to the grounds of Hogwarts and it was snowing. He gave a small grin. Now that was surprising. It was just like in his dream... Snowing and making snow angels with a particular someone. Throwing snowballs at one another and simply just enjoying the moment. Oh.. Speaking of enjoying the moment, Harry's lips were once again forming a reluctant grin... The memory of that particular dream was exciting and new for him.Him. Her. Laughing.Fighting playfully in the snow. Rolling on the snowy plains. Landing on top of each other. The snowflakes in her hair, that makes her an even more enchanting sight.Lips getting closer..Closer. So close that he can see his own reflection clearly in her beautiful brown eyes... Kissing and making out like there was no tomorrow... The heat of the moment, Harry recalled, was so intense that by the mere memory of it, he closed his eyes as he sat up straight in bed, reliving the pleasure it had brought him.

Damn. It was like a stubborn hangover, he thought to himself, these dreams. It made him crazy. Crazy and happy, in a delirious way. Not that he even knew what a hangover really was.. Butterbeers and Firewhisky were of course a delight, but he was in fact too busy thinking of plans and tactics to save everybody's asses from that annoying and dramatic Voldemort to ever get himself drunk silly and just enjoy the benefits of being sixteen; girls and booze. With yet another groan, he looked at his roommate,Ron. He knew it was wrong. It was very wrong to be reliving these dreams and enjoying them as if they were in fact a reality. He knew that the girl was out of bounds.

_She was not his to claim._

_She was not his to kiss._

_She was not his to love._

_She was not his to treasure._

Harry looked over to Ron, his thoughts as muddled as it was the 14 consecutive nights before. Yes, it has occurred to him 14 times. The same 2 characters in the dream. Each as overwhelming and sensual as the next. He knew Ron was his best friend, a fierce and loyal friend that would do anything for Harry and would sacrifice anything for Harry's happiness and needs. And was Harry going to betray his utmost trust in him? Damn. This was quite a situation to handle. And the fact that it had occurred so suddenly was...like smacking a Hungarian Horntail dragon into his face. He knew it was wrong but why was his heart starting to beat faster than ever before with every single sight of her smile and toothy grin she flashed him?

After all these years, and suddenly..WHAM.. His feelings were going out of control. Harry shook his head in complete disbelief with himself. Before he knew it,the rays of the early morning sun were already passing through his frosty windows.. So long was he in his thoughts that he didn't realise that Neville's Longbottom snores were no more and in fact that boy was waving his palm in front of Harry's face, awakening him from his thoughts.

" Oi.. You ok???? You look... weird...Is it another dream about..."

"No," was Harry's short and curt reply. Sensing confusion and worry from Neville and other mates he gave them a smile,assuring them that he was just thinking of what to get them for Christmas during their trip to Hogsmeade later.. The furrowed brows of his mates was not a look that he was expecting..Silence ensued until Seamus Finnigan spoke in a very girly voice...

"You mean,you stayed up all night thinking about what to get for us.. Awwwww... How sweet..Itty bitty potter fretting over our Christmas gifts all night..."Seamus uttered making pathetic face,batting his eye lashes in mock gratefulness. A chorus of laughter from Dean and Neville followed. Harry grinned. Trust his mates to make him laugh and forget about his problems once in a while.

"Oh, while you are at it, please add a Firebolt to my list yeah Harry..." Dean laughed, throwing his pillow at Harry's face. And probably a carton of condoms too. The last time i've checked, my supplies were running low...Don't worry.. Longbottom's supplies are still in stock. Probably collecting dust in his trunk...Poor things..."

"OI!!! Very funny..Ha ha ha.." Neville Longbottom was rather pink in the face as he threw his Herbology book from his bedside table at Dean, only to find that it missed his target and went on flying, only to hit the sleeping head of their redheaded roommate. Ron's reaction only added even more laughter to the room. Rubbing his head from obvious pain that 700 page book has brought, he merely opened one eyelid,and muttered a single line that clearly stated he was still in la la land.

"Oww..Groan...Is it Christmas already,Mum?"

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

The hustle and bustle of the common room that day was understandable. Everyone has woken up early to do their last minute Christmas shopping in Hogsmeade that day. It was a perfect weather to be outside. The heavy storm of snow upon Hogwart's frozen grounds has stopped,leaving behind layers of snow;perfect for snowfights,making snow angels, sleigh riding and of course, making Snowman and later enchanting them as recruiting them as soldiers for the students' snowball battle against one another. 1st years could be seen rolling the snow into small balls in their fists, using their magic purposefully, making their weapons of destruction bigger and stronger before hitting their opponents. For those permitted to go to Hogsmeade like Harry and his other classmates, it was a whole other affair. Couples meeting in the stairways, huddling close to each other for warmth as they make their way to the picture perfect magical village. Cliques of chattering girls excitedly wondering about the latest collection of robes for their upcoming Christmas parties back in their homes,various beauty enhancement magical potions specially promoted during the Xmas season. The mischevious ones probably will purchase love potions or the new and improved Murderous Mistletoe,( as quoted by Harry's mates)a mistletoe specially enhanced and magicked in such a way that it will be permanently be attached to the chosen boy of the girl's choice, hanging like a halo over their heads, singing cheesy Xmas jingles and turn to poison ivy and tangle all over their victim's body every time the chosen boy deny to give the girl the kiss. Harry remembered how Derrick Thompson, a third year student was send to the Hospital Wing a few days ago because his maniac admirer has set upon him about 20 mistletoe at a time.

Harry dressed particularly carefully that day. He looked into his mirror more than 10 times,feeling conscious of his hair and his clothing. He continued to primp in the mirror until Ron yelled

" One more time you look into the mirror, I swear I'll set a murderous mistletoe on you, specially ordered and sent lovingly by your biggest fan MOANING MYRTLE! Hurry up.. Hermione will be mad at us you prat.. Your hair looks pretty and your eyes are always as enchanting as your mother's, so COME ON, LET's GO!!!!"

The common room was nearly deserted by now and at the sight of a certain girl, he was left speechless momentarily. The sight of her was a refreshing sight for him, and the images of last night dream immediately flashed before his eyes. He hid his grin and turn his attention on Ron instead, engaging himself with talk about Quidditch supplies and such.

"Hurry up guys...I don't want to miss out on the Xmas sale. I wanna get mum her favourite Honeydukes chocolates( taste just like chocolates but has 0 grams of trans fat or sugar in it) and dad's special toothpaste(guaranteed to immediately fix every nook and cranny of his teeth and fix any holes,gum problems etc.)!" Hermione nagged at them, while tapping her left foot impatiently.

"Bye Harry! Bye Ron! Bye Hermione!See ya around in Hogsmeade!!" Ginny Weasly yelled to him as she and Dean made their way out of the common room, hands in hands,clearly a picture-perfect couple to everyone's eyes except for Ron and Harry. There was just something about Dean that Harry didn't like and there was everything about Dean that Ron truthfully and wholeheartedly hated.

"Aww..Come on Hermione..It was only because dear ol Harry and me were too busy discussing what to buy for you this year. You know, for a special girl like yourself,Hermy..."joked Ron while rolling his eyes as they made their way out of their common room and to the awaiting coaches that will bring them to Hogsmeade."

"Oh, yes. Thanks Ronald.. That's superbly sensitive of you..." Hermione replied in clear mockery tones, but there was a slight shade of pink colouring her cheeks as she said that.

"Yeah, we could have made it down sooner if it wasn't for Harry's PRIMP MY FACE session.Seriously, i've never seen Harry making out with a mirror but today's the day."Ron pointed out to Hermione,much to the embarrassment of Harry.

"Haha!Oh really? Oohhhh.. Is it because of a certain girl that we all know..." teased Hermione as they climbed into the coaches and sat on the comfy seats.

Harry gave a small grin and looked at Hermione who was seated across him with Ron. Harry noticed that she too was dressed in her best, a rather cute and flattering attire that enhances her figure... Her pink cheeks, probably from the cold, and her hair,which was surprisingly less bushier than it usually was; tendrils of soft curls framing her smiling face and her large beautiful eyes that lies beneath tose thick lashes of hers.. The lips that were not encased in shiny pink lipgloss that all the other girls wore including Cho,making them look so fake and PVC like. No, hers were naturally plump and rosy red and his eyes lingered for a moment on them. Yes, those were the exact lips that were on his in last night's dream. For a fraction of a minute his eyes lingered on them before meeting Hermione's eyes and answered her question with a well-played careless shrug and a smile.

"Yeah,probably..."

Hermione grinned and went on talking about her plans in Hogsmeade that day,while Ron continued making complains on how he will probably be an ice block by the time they finished following Hermione all around Hogsmeade. Harry half-listened to Hermione's animated conversation, giving another grin as he noticed her gleaming eyes at the mere sight of Hogsmeade's stationary shop and bookstore. His heart gave a thunderous beating as he saw her licked her lips unconsciously before getting off the coach after Ron. Hermione held out her hand to Harry as he climbed down the coach before running off to throw a snowball at Ron retreating figure. Harry looked at the sight before him, offered a silent prayer to heavens as he made his way towards them. Boy,was he in deep touble.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Ok, how's my 1st chappie.. Hate it ?urgh...Lurve it? yay!hehehe..okok. please review if u think it stinks, please review if you think it's ok...

Btw the lyrics are from this singer Taufik Batisah, "I promise forever"-- a perfect song for this fanfict actually.. hehe..

Happy xmas shopping!


	2. Chapter 2

**Harry's Special Xmas**

Hi..This the second chapter. :) Took me some time to complete it because i had some distractions, which is of course... SHOPPING!hehe... So the last time we left Harry was when he was pondering about Hermione and trying to comprehend these weird dreams he has been having... Initially I wanted to explain why he started to have these dreams but... nah.. u'll find out in the future..hehehe..so read on ya! Im still intent on making the dateline... Pray for me health and enjoy the next chapter.

Disclaimer: If i was JK rowling, i'll be happy that i'm a millionaire and probably laugh at this story... All characters belong to her ya:)

* * *

**Chapter 2:**

The cosy village of Hogsmeade was just as breathtaking as ever as the golden trio made their way through the crowd of fellow Hogwarts students and the village residents. The laughter of kids and the jingle of bells plus the chorus of Xmas carols from little tiny elves along the street added to the festive cheer of the holidays. The trees around the village were all covered with snow but bewitched in way so that it swayed to the beat of the Xmas songs. For the first time,Harry was clearly noticing the beauty of Hogsmeade during the Xmas season..Or..Maybe it was because it was Hermione who was excitedly pointing out to Harry all the magnificient sights. Ron on the other hand, was too busy eyeing the new Quidditch set on display to notice Hermione and Harry lagging behind admiring all the sights and sounds of Xmas.

"Eww.. Harry.. Look at that.." Hermione said while grabbing Harry's hand and pulling him towards the popular store, Honeydukes. Harry was surprised to feel the zing from his fingers to his toes as Hermione grabbed his hand and before he could utter a word, he saw the funny ugly things that had grabbed Hermione's attention. There were grumpy little gnomes in the air,dressed up as little fairies, supposedly flying while throwing out sample of sweets and mini chocs and sweets from Honeydukes. Harry looked at the gnomes unconvincingly as he brushed out the mini wrapped candies that fell upon his crop of hair as he walked along the pavement outside Honeydukes.

"Bad idea for advertising." He muttered.Hermione laughed and he squeezed Hermione's hand,as he gazed upon her face. She was now busy eyeing out the chocolates on display,making her "thinking-face" as she scanned through the array of choices from the window shop. Harry,on the other hand, was trying to comprehend why he was looking at Hermione weirdly. He knew it was not right.For the past few days, he realized he was mesmerized by her face. There was this innocence and earnestness in her face whenever she's saying something. Her expression on her face whenever she's exasperated,annoyed and angry was tugging the strings of his heart and probably making it thud even faster whenever he sees her. Thank God, the past few days Ron has been quite unattentive or rather not noticing Harry's OWN attentiveness towards Hermione. Giving a chuckle, he squeezed Hermione's hand again. Hermione turned sideways to face Harry...

"Are you laughing at the gnomes?They are probably not paid to that ...Let's hope they don't employ gnomes next to clean up Hogwarts..Those poor gnomes.. And the S.P.E.W movement isn't even set up proper. We don't have enough supporters and..."

"But they are rather disgusting and grumpy, Hermione..."

"But they do have a right too..."

"Welll...Yea...th..."

"Yea...A right to be ugly and unattractive...Don't tell me we gonna start a S.P.E.W thingy for them too!"Ron's voice suddenly emerged from behind them.

"Why not? If Honeydukes see that as cheap or free labour, other stores will probably use them too and we should protect the rights of these gnomes!",Hermione said angrily, completely dissatisfied with Ron's smirk.

Harry could only grin helplessly at the sight of 2 of them, although, he must admit, Hermione's face was cuter when she's angry.

"Okok. You obviously don't know there's a respectable number of population in our backyard and we already started an organisation specially for them. I think it was Fred's or George's idea." Ron said with sudden seriousness.

"Really????" Hermione's face was incredulous.

"Yea. Named respectably,ahem.. drum roll please...The G.A.D association." Ron exclaimed.

"The GAD???"Hermione and Harry said in unison, amusement and disbelief etched on both of their faces.

" Yep, we Weasly brothers are fully supportive of this campaign of ours that fully believe in the message that we hope can spread to the masses. A simple and strong message.

"So what is it?"Hermione asked in disbelief.

"Gnomes Are Dumb. Get it?Well, since we already addressed this unnecessary query of yours, Come on,let's enter Honeydukes to get your chocolates Herm. I wanna get some for Ginny and Mum.. "Ron's quickly explained before rushing off to escape the fiery gaze of anger and irritation from Hermione.

Hermione was about to let go of Harry's hand and , march inside the crowded shop when Harry intervened.

"Hey, why don't you get your other stuff. I saw a flying banner earlier on saying there's a 50 off sale going on in the Quills shop.. Anyways, it's crowded here, I can get your stuff for you,"he said automatically.

"That Ron is such a ... Argh! Ok.Thanks Harry,"Hermione said,giving Harry a grateful glance. "I'll meet you including that insensitive wart over at the shop later on then.."

"Oi Harry,... Where the hell are ya," yelled Ron, "can you get your ass in here and help me. It's a super packed and crowded.I cant breathe in here!"

After getting a whole basketful of chocolates for Ron's family and Hermione and a whole lot chocolate related stuff for their close friends,like that chocolate bars filled with surprise fillings including sardine,lemongrass,onion and garlic as gifts for Fred and George, they went out, utterly exhausted and a bit sweaty despite the cold weather.

" If only there was ever Internet shopping in Hogwarts... it'll be better than all this...," Harry said as he sat down at the newest pub in Hogsmeade, "Wicked Wizzy ", the hottest new venue targeted for youngsters.

"What's..."

"Ron,you can't even know the correct way of using the "fellytone" so... there's no use of me explaining it to you."

"Err.. yea..Haha! Where's that Hermione? Nah, let's go and have fun at the my bro's shop.We can nick a few stuff from there.. no, they wont let me.. They'll probably give a whole box for you free, i suppose...hahaha"

"Haha. Probably,alright,wanna finish up my drink first and Ron..I need to ask..."

Before Harry could continue, Ron was well out of the door closely followed behind by a group of cackling and giggling girls, most of them from Harry's year. With a gulp, he magicked his large packagings so as to make it a whole lot lighter before carrying them out of the door. He almost bumped into Cho in his hurry to get out and catch up with Ron. The moment was well, awkward. Giving not so much of a glance towards Cho and Michael Corner,he muttered a half-hearted hi towards them before walking up the streets towards to Fred and Geoge's shop, the ultimate heaven and mecca for pranksters and the like.

Harry didn't expect to see Hermione until the later end of the day, but he could spot that hair of hers anywhere, plus she was wearing a really pink striking wooly sorta cap.She was in the fashion boutique with Ginny, which was located only 2 stores away from his destination. Ginny was holding out a gorgeous dress towards Hermione.It was nothing like the periwinkle dress she wore for the dance 2 years ago. In fact it was better;a magnificent shade of purplish pink. He grinned at his friend, her utmost resistance against wearing that dress probably because it was tight and figure hugging and as Harry could have guessed;not Hermione's style.

_What was Hermione's style then,_ he suddenly wondered to himself. A visual image of a previous dream that hit him. A very elegant Hermione, in a dress that has a modest square neckline accented with beaded embroidery at the neckline and inverted center pleat. Simple elegant. It was that one single dream out of all the dreams that he has that made him nervous.

Judging by Ginny's body language, she can be pretty convincing and pushy too as he saw Hermione give up and took the dress from Ginny before going to the dressing room to try it. Ok, this was interesting. He walked nearer to the shop to get a better glimpse of Hermione and was glad Dean was outside, muttering about girls and their shopping so that he can at least have a decent conversation with him while eyeing the scene that was about to enfold inside. He didn't know the reason why,but a part of him really wanted to see Hermione in that dress. It didn't matter that Dean was probably talking about some Quidditch practice session with him,his eyes were still somehow fixed against the the window of the shop,waiting...

The girl who finally emerged from the dressing room was a vision. The dress hugged Hermione's curves in all the right places and her hair, which was tied up in a high and messy ponytail showed off her trim shoulders and neck and even though there wasn't a smile on Hermione's face as she whirled around showing the laughing Ginny how short the dress was,she still looked spectacular.

Even Dean who was blabbering stopped short...

"Bloody hell. Is that our Hermione??? Hermione! Haha!! Baby got back!" Dean joked,slapping his knee in laughter.

Harry on the other hand, was simply speechless. He knew he should not be thinking about Hermione in that way, but looking at her in that dress certainly made him think of her in THAT WAY!

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

"Ginny,stop laughing!! I am just going to ignore the fact that you,my friend has FORCED me to wear this dress when I wanted to wear try on THAT light blue one. And I am OUTRAGED that you little,sneak,sued a charm to SOOOO shortened it before i actually try it ON! URGH. I mean look at this monstrosity that I'm wearing!" Hermione said as she whirled around, pointing to the hem of the dress.

"Haha..It's pretty and my my,herMYnie..I didn't know that there was a hotter babe than me beneath all those shapeless potato sacks that you wear...HAHA! I mean I knew you looked hot during the last dance but this..." Ginny circled Hermione like an eagle eyeing its prey, tapping her index finger on her chin as she made her analysis.

"THIS IS a pretty hot girl!" Ginny squealed and laughed.

"I know, i mean.. I DON't KNOW!!My mum will kill me and burn my books if she saw me wearing this and say that i looked like a..."

"Like a what?" Ginny demanded as she grinned mockingly at Hermione.

"A scarlet women as quoted from a person whom you very well KNOW!" Hermione said much to the laughter of Ginny which made her felt worse about herself.

"Relax 'Mione.It looks great. Of course, if it's a bit more longer,like that..."Ginny waved her wand.. "Then i guess it's alright. Alright but not as hot and bootylicious!"

"What about..."

"No,stick with that one.. You need a dress so I picked one for you.As for moi,I need to go now to comfort Dean who is probably bored waiting for me right..." Ginny turned around and was surprised to see not only Dean outside waiting and smiling cheekily but also her old flame, Harry Potter looking so..NOT himself at the moment. His eyes were so wide opened and there was sort of dazed look on his face which reminded Ginny of the time during Quidditch practice when one of their players accidentally hit a bludger to his head.

Ginny turned back to the red-faced Hermione,grinned.

"Seee.Even sweet innocent Harry likes it. It's official. You've been labelled a Hottie." Ginny placed her index finger on the tip of her tongue and then placed it on her bum and did the official sizzle sound.

Hermione could have just died from embarrassment at that very second.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

After that incident, Harry was smart to keep his mouth shut and pretended he wasn't affected by the scene earlier on. It was very clear when Hermione met with the 2 of them later that day she was still rather embarrassed. Back in the common,arms laden with packagings and such, the trio warmed themselves up in the room which was now crowded with Gryffindors.

"I could really use a Firewhisky right about now."Ron said, shivering before he used a charm to try to warm himself, only to make his sleeve catch on fire. Harry,Ginny,Dean, Fred and George laughed at the sight of Ron, attempting to make it stop.

"Oh Ronald,"Hermione said before muttering the incantation to put it off.

"Ya. That's better, thanks for making me soaking wet again,Hermione. Now i'm colder than ever...

"The least I can get is a thank you,Ronald." Hermione said with a slightly hurt voice

"Geez!Alright!Thanks 'Mione.From the bottom of my heart!You want me to add bits of love into my thanks as well." Ron joked before turning to Harry and the others asking them whether they wanted to play Exploding Snap before most of the Gryffindors head home the next day for the Christmas holidays. Hermione rolled her eyes at that comment as she and the others joined in the fun. Harry,on the other hand, was pretty tired after the whole shopping trip and decided to just watch them play,laughing occasionally each time Ron grumbled whenever his cards exploded in his face.

"Hey Harry,come on. Don't be a wet blanket. Join in. It's the holidays. Let go of your worries. Don't think about You-Know-Who and his plan Z or anything else related to him. He's probably roasting marshmallows by the fire and singing Xmas carols while his deatheaters wait longingly for him to kiss them under the mistletoe. It's the holidays! Let loose, footloose!" Fred joked as he high-fived his twin.

Harry snorted. Yea,easy for them to say. At least they don't have Horcruxes to worry about. No worry about getting killed each year. No worries about saving the rest of the wizarding world from an evil monster that's getting stronger by the minute. He sighed as he turned his comfy chair towards the crackling fireplace,deep in thought. He knew that this was his destiny. It didn't make things any easier because he knew he could stop caring and just let things go. Stop caring and let others take the responsibility. Just let..just let... Voldemort rule? Damn, he must be tired to be thinking about that. With a groan, he sank back into the chair, arms hanging limp and tired by its side as his eyelids closed. If only things were much less complicated.

A soft tenderness woke him from his nap. Someone was tenderly holding his hand,calling him to wake up. A sweet scent of something familiar. Very familiar. He opened his eyes slowly and there was Hermione, dressed in her nightgown, smiling and shaking him awake.

"Hey... Ron tried waking you up earlier on but you would'nt budge. Guess you were really tired."

Harry yawned and rubbed his eyes. "What time is it?" he said as he turned to smile to Hermione who was looking rather cute in her bunny slippers. Her hair was tied to the side and he could smell the subtle fragrance of lavender. _Probably her favourite __shampoo.God__, why hasn't he noticed that.__God__,she__ smells nice._

_"_It's nearly 1am. Why are you smiling?" Hermione asked.

"Oh.. Nothing.. It's just that... you..erm.. smell really nice..."

"Oh really?"Hermione sat on the arm of the chair, scooting nearer to Harry

"Err.. Yea.."Harry uttered nervously, his heartbeat beating fast.

"Ohh.. You are always the gentleman,Harry.So kind.So sweet," she suddenly trailed her fingertips playfully along Harry's left arm.

"Ha..Well, only to some...," he laughed nervously, his heartbeat getting faster...

"Well, for that compliment, I think you deserve this..." Hermione's eyes met him, her brown beautiful ones staring back into Harry's green eyes and much to Harry surprise, brought her face nearer to his, lips inching nearer and nearer to him and locked themselves into his. Harry's surprise turned into pleasure as he wrapped his arms around the girl,taking in the scent of her, the nice tender feel of her, the softness of her hair around him...A piece of heaven against his lips that was finally his,which made him realised it could only be a...

"OOF!"

Something soft was definitely on his face. But it was something soft that was hitting him repetitively and obstructing his breathing.He managed to voiced out a muffled "OI!" before his attacker stopped.

He expected Ron's face to emerge when he finally managed to breathe,instead it was...

Her soft laughter was rather unexpected,considering the fact that it was only a couple hours back when both of them couldn't really face each other in the face due to an incident involving a particular dress. Hermione grinned at Harry and he found himself grinning back.

"Did you know that you were snoring? I didn't know that you snore like a washing machine!" She laughed as she hit him in the face again with a pillow.

"Ha Ha. Thanks..What time is it by the way... Where are the rest? Why didn't you guys wake me up?"

"Well, Mr Harry Potter.. It's nearly one and Ron's probably sleeping like a baby in his dorm with the others. We wanted to wake you up,really we did! Fred even suggested we put Crookshanks over your snoring face...Hey, don't you dare throw that pillow at me...haha! It was his idea,not mine.. But you were looking so peaceful and blissfully sleeping that we didn't had the heart to do so.."

_Yea__,wonder__ why,_ he thought silently to himself as he watched Hermione re-tie her pony tail.

"One thing's for sure," she continued, " it's definitely not Voldermort you're thinking about since I caught you several times, smiling in your sleep." Hermione giggled.

"Oh, look who's making fun of me now. That right should have been given to me considering the fact that ahem... someone was wearing this dress that was so...HEY!" Another pillow hit him in the face and so a pillow fight followed.

After several throws here and there, they both landed on the carpet,laughing. Hermione gave a sigh as she stared into the fireplace. The look on her face told Harry that she was reminiscing about something and before he could ask, Hermione turned towards him.

" I remembered how when I was small, I used to argue with my parents every single Christmas's eve. You see, I wasn't like the others. I was quite cynical about this Santa guy and will always bombard my parents with questions on whether he really existed. I would plan many traps for this supposed Santa,who was of course my dad, which unfortunately landed him a couple of times either limping and groaning with pain every single Christmas morning. Yep, it was funny. They finally told me that Santa was officially fired after that." Hermione laughed. "How was your Christmas like before you came to Hogwarts?"

Harry gave a snort and explained that the Dursleys were very much into Christmas, decorating their backyard with Christmas paraphernalia, lights here and there and occasionally, parties were held.

"Yea, They would usually give Dudley all the big presents and I would be lucky to even get half a pair of socks from Uncle Vernon.. In fact, I used to hate Christmas because that's the time when I would usually either be locked in my cupboard under the stairs whenever there was a party. The presents, I didn't really bothered much. But back then, I knew Christmas was usually the time I would miss my parents the most..." He said sadly as he stared into the fire,another ache hitting him as he remembered Sirius.

Hermione took Harry's hand into hers, stroking it gently. Harry tore his attention from the fire and glanced at their hands,giving a small smile. He hated being weepy in front of people, especially Hermione but before he knew it, tears began to form. He hastily wiped them away with the back of his hands.

" I used to dream every night, before Christmas about the perfect Christmas morning. It's pretty much like those Muggle advertisements they have on tv. Perfect Christmas tree. Singing Christmas Carols. Running down the stairs eagerly to find my presents under the tree. Kissing Mum and Dad, thanking them for their parents as they smiled,watching me play with the presents that I've got."

He thought about the Dursleys and gave a cynical laugh at the thought of them doing the same thing. Hermione squeezed his hand and this made him smile, his stomach giving that familiar flutter that he used to get whenever he saw Cho nearby. This made him nervous. Before he could utter a single word,Hermione spoke.

"Well, you got us here at Hogwarts Harry. My mum and dad,as you know, are on their what,fifth honeymoon? Hahaha!So... Yeah... You can be sure it'll be a fun and special Christmas this time like always at Hogwarts!"

He grinned and again, couldn't help but lingered his gaze upon Hermione's lips.

"Yes.A special Christmas,"he said...

_A special Christmas with a __special girl..._

_-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------_

I had fun writing this chapter. Hope you enjoyed reading it. Tell me what you think... Happy Holidays!!! X)


	3. Chapter 3

**Harry's Special Xmas**

Hi.. This chapter is a bit longer than I expected.I know some will be confused with whether this fanfic is based on H/Hr or H/Ginny. grins The thing of it is, I'm not even so sure myself..LOL! Nah, Of course i know. But I guess you guys have to stick around to find out. Pardon me on my grammar. Was typing this story out while watching the Asian Idol shows at the same time 2 nights before. X) Im not sure what they call it, but this fanfict is not based on the exact events in the HP series. So,pls expect the unexpected.Ok i shall quit rambling and let you get on with the reading. As usual, thanks for reading. Im still surprised there's quite a number of people willing to read my story.. X)

Disclaimer: I do not own the characters. Duh. It's all hers: JK Rowling

* * *

Chapter 3:

The next day was quite an eventful day for Harry and the rest of the Gryffindors. The crowded common room was quite a sight, baggages here and there,last minute checks being done and of course, the sight of parting couples,each with their own rendition of silent goodbyes much to the dismayed Harry. Even Ron managed to join in the "festivities" by making out with a girl by the fireplace. Harry shook his head at the sight of his best friend. Ron was of course no flirt like all the cool and pretty boys in Hogwarts. _Hey, I'm cool._ A voice inside him uttered. _Nah, I __aint__ pretty. And __a girl__ wants__ a boy who's always by her side__. Not battling some evil monster__ and thinking about saving the world. Talk about serious issues_. He gave a rueful sigh. Both Harry and Ron had trouble even asking a member of the opposite sex out in the past. But ever since Ron discovered the "joy" of making out and kissing his ex-girlfriend Lavender Brown, his ego was inflated to gigantic proportions especially with the help of a certain book. A book that was supposed to teach boys the dos and don't of dating and how to attract witches to them like moths to a flame. Yeah, too bad he didn't have enough common sense to see the perfect angel that's already waiting for him right in front of him.

_WHY AM I SUDDENLY THINKING ABOUT HERMIONE IN THAT WAY??????!!! _He screamed silently. _Blame it on the __dream.Blame__ it on the dreams... __oooh__..Those passionate dreams ..Ok stop it Harry. This is freaky..._

Harry turned to see Hermione sulking in the corner, her eyes fixated upon the couple and by the looks of it, she was pretty pissed. Very pissed. In fact, one hand was in her pocket and Harry knew that she was holding onto her wand, fingers probably itching to curse the girl into oblivion. His heart gave an unexpected ache. Again, he felt like kicking himself. It wasn't his business and right to feel this way for Hermione. But his heart wasn't lying. There was something going on in him that ignites nowadays whenever he saw Hermione. In fact as her eyes finally tore away from Ron and found Harry, she gave a big smile and motioned him to come over to where he was seated. He went over and sat himself between Hermione and Neville who was grumbling about a misplaced package for his grandmother.

"Hey Harry,looks like Ron's busy tongue-ing it out with someone to even bother about us," Hermione muttered sadly as she played around with her wand,making colourful sparks in the air as she waves them about.

" Well,that girl probably set a murderous mistletoe upon him," Harry replied carefully,not wanting to hurt Hermione's feelings.

" I mean,I don't really care about who he wants to snog but must he really do it in public, I mean, it's disgusting, revolting and it's urgh! He has no heart. Doesn't he think about what others feel about such a display of affection. I mean, I don't like it," she said with a stubborn frown.

Harry grinned. Again, that innocence and stubbornness. But Harry knew better. Maybe he should go ahead and figure things out.

"But that's what people in love do right? I mean that's what you do when you want to show that they like someone. I mean, Ron, as insensitive as I think you should know, well, he's still a lad. A growing boy. You know,his hormones are probably at a higher priority. But, seriously 'Mione, I mean,you should know.. You and Krum..." Harry said, not really looking at Hermione's eyes, afraid that he might show something more than he intended to.

"Oh." Hermione went red. There was something in her face that made Harry want to question her further.

"Huh?_Oh_???_Oh _as in, _Oh yes I __understand_.Or _oh_ as in _Oh-oh_?" Harry inquired looking at Hermione's face.

"Well, erm.. Krum and..We didn't really... I mean, the kiss... It was never like.. "

"WHAT?You mean, you never kissed him??! But I thought, you know.. Ginny said.." Harry's eyes widened. Now _this _was news.

"SHHHH... Okok!This is clearly not the place to discuss this matter. Come on, let's head off outside to get out from this.. urgh.." Hermione said as she pulled Harry out of the common room before giving one last look at the couple,disgust and fury in her eyes.

Once they were outside in the freezing courtyard, Hermione continued. She was clearly still embarrassed and was reluctant to continue talking about the matter but under Harry's questioning gaze,she finally gave in.

"Alright!!!! I was probably exaggerating to our dear Ginny! I mean, what was I suppose to do! Me being her best friend and all. She and her conquests. Well, I had nothing ok. All he did was kiss me here." Hermione said, pointing to her reddening cheeks much to Harry's amusement.

" I didn't think... I don't want.. You know,to go further because I knew it wasn't serious at all. Just a .. you know.. Fun distraction and I didn't want to kiss..erm.. someone who's not really someone I'm interested in.Yes. I know.I lied. I led him on. I'm not angel. Happy now?" She said, as she stuck out her chin and folded her arms and stared Harry down,daring him to say something.

_But you are. You are an angel._

" So you really like him,huh?" Harry managed to forge a teasing front even though he knew a part of him was feeling... surprisingly,less than perfect.

"Erm..,"Hermione was quiet for a moment,her face as red as it could ever be. " I dunnoe.. I.. I just think.. He's.. I think he's ok.. Ok, I can't believe I'm having this conversation with you Harry James Potter!" Hermione stopped,now playfully shoving him off. She scooped a pile of snow from the ground and immediately formed a snowball aiming it at Harry who was caught off guard. The snowball smashed right onto his chest. Hermione laughed, pointing at Harry's shocked reaction before throwing yet another one at him before he could react.

"Oh no, you didn't just do that.. Haha! THIS IS WAR!!!"

"Oh really. Best of luck then!" Hermione pointed out, her snow dome ready with a huge pile of snowballs ready for battle within mere seconds with just a wave of her wand while Harry stood pathetically, with a snowball in his hands!

"Hey,no fair. No magic. Fair muggle play."

"You snooze, you lose Potter!"

Their laughter and screams,hitting each other with multiple snowballs, continued til Harry decided that he better hang his white flag before they both froze to death.

'Ok fine,'Mione. I give up!!!"Harry laughed, as yet another snowball hit his back. He lay on the ground, clearly exhausted, his arms wide , and started making snow angels. Hermione laid next to him doing the same thing.

"I bet my angel's much prettier than yours, Harry."

"Must you be the best in everything Hermione?" Harry laughed as both of them flapped their arms in the layers of snow.

"Well,you should know me very well Harry. We have been friends for what, six years now..."

"Yea, and only now, did I know you really like him."

Hermione turned to Harry's side and Harry gave a reluctant grin as she placed a hand on Harry's chest. " I didn't even say who I was referring to,Miss Granger. So, iIguess it's our dear Ron huh?" Hermione blushed before giving a tiny nod.

"Yea, I must be crazy to fall for him but yea, I really do like him. He's just too.. too busy to notice." She closed her eyes, looking greatly relieved to be able to talk about it to Harry. She laid her head closer to Harry's shoulders.

Harry was about to say that Ron did notice Hermione and a part of him wanted to mention how affected Ron was when Hermione went out with Krum ,but the feel of Hermione lying close to him was enough to distract him.

" No one could ever not notice you. You are special." He said softly as he stroked her hair slowly.

Hermione smiled at Harry, her soft pink lips glistening in the morning sun. "You're being too nice,Harry. No wonder a lot of girls fall for you."

He sighed.

"Come on, we better go. I wanna say goodbye to Seamus and the rest." Hermione jumped up and pulled Harry up. " Race ya to the common room!"

Harry watched as Hermione ran her way to the common room. He knew something was going on.This is surreal. He could swear that now a part of him was missing right then.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Ronald Weasly watched his best friend Harry Potter playing with his lunch, a strange look upon his face. _Should I even ask? That guy needs a break. Sigh_. Being the best friend of someone as popular as Harry did have its advantages. Being recognised, being able to be there in the midst of the action, not that he enjoyed all of it but what's life without a few dragons every now and then. But he knew, no one can ever truly know what are Harry's feeling or what he's thinking about. Looking carefully at his friend, he knew there was absolutely something up with him. Something different. Harry wasn't the kind to keep his problems or any kind of secrets regarding You-Know-Who from his best friends. In fact, Hermione and Ron were the source of comfort and answers for him. For answers, it was more of Hermione than him but still, they were too close to keep secrets from each other.

"Hey mate,whats'up? You look really pre-occupied. Dumbledore set up another task for you this time?"

Harry took his time answering Ron's question, pushing his carrots and peas to one side of the plate, a blank look on his face. He looked at Ron's concerned face.

"Nah,just thinking about something." _Just thinking about __a certain girl _"By the way, how's your mum and dad? Reached Romania already?" Ron's parents, his twin brothers were all away for Christmas to see Ron's brother Charlie who has been studying dragons there for a couple of years already. Recently, he was quarantined for dragon pox and his folks were flying there to keep him company for Christmas. Fred and George were there to do market research and of course source out for new ingredients for their prank shop. So, the rest of the Weasley kids were staying in Hogwarts which was a great relief for Harry since he has been banned from returning home to the Dursleys every single Christmas.

" Yea. Mum and dad are fine as usual. Well mate, you know, you can always turn to us if you need any help. Where's 'Mione by the way? Didn't see her coming down for lunch earlier on." Ron said,as he munched on his chicken wing greedily.

Harry didn't answer. He so wanted to ask Ron that single question that is on his mind. He knew it was a risk but there was this feeling in him that urged him to do so and he knew he will not have a single clear thought running through his mind if he didn't ask Ron and judging by all the talks he had Dumbledore lately about Horcruxes and such, a clear mind is definitely an important thing to be having especially if you're the one destined to kill of Voldemort,Harry thought miserably.

" Mind if I ask you something...Something..ah..important.." The sudden change of tone in Harry's voice made Ron look up from his mountain of food on his plate. Ron gave a nod as he drank his pumpkin juice, the question in his eyes was well, unquestionable.

"Do you.. I mean... How do you feel...I mean... Haha.." Harry laughed nervously as he avoided looking at Ron at the same time.

"What? "

"How... ahem.. do you feel about...how can i say this..." Harry said uncomfortably, as he continued staring at his peas and carrots.

"Yea????"

"What do you think if I... Ahhhh...I mean.. How do you feel about..."

His tongue felt as if it was glued to the roof of his mouth and he so desperately want to ask it but this was Ron he was talking to, his best friend,his loyal supporter, his only source of...

" SPIT IT OUT MATE! How do i feel about????About what???" Ron was getting irritated and this caused Harry to blurt out a line he didn't expect.

"GIRLS." _Damn. __Damn.Damn__. Damn. I can't say it. I can't say __it.ARGH!__And__ that's the best I could do?_

"Huh?????" Ron's reaction to Harry's question was predictable. He looked so confused and shocked at the same time that Harry was sure, if it was him looking at the both of them from a third person's perspective it would be quite a sight.

"Errr.. Yeah.. Girls... You know... Girls..." Harry blurted out. _Damn, this wasn't good. He felt like an idiot.A big fat idiot._

" Girls? What do you mean? How I feel about them?" Ron repeated, clearly confused on how to approach the question.

Harry wanted to run and knock his head on the walls a million times for coming up with such a stupid question and he knew there was no escaping it now. It wasn't the moment to ask and at that time, he felt like the biggest chicken shit ever .

"Ye...Yeah.. Yeah.. Girls." Harry said reluctantly.

"Girls. Err, yea, I like girls who are fine... Well, one that wouldn't call me Won-won of course. Veelas are gorgeous like duh.. But.. Why... OH MY GOD." Ron stopped short, his eyes widening so wide, Harry swore, his eyeballs could probably fall off at that very moment. The amount of shock on Ron's face was more than Harry could handle as he tried to comprehend what was going on.

"Wait Harry, let me get this straight...You're asking me this because..."

_Damn.Damn. Damn. Maybe Ron was smarter than he thought. Maybe he knew about him and his deepest secret about..._

" You're gay."

It took a while for Harry to really take in Ron's one liner. The combination was just too much.Ron's face. Harry's frantically beating heart that was going out of control for the moment for the fear of Ron finally knowing. And that answer. It was all too much for Harry... He was speechless for a few seconds...

" So it's true then.GOSH! Why didn't you tell me this earlier... I mean I'm your best friend.So is that the real reason why you broke up with Cho. I mean I thought...," Ron rambled on and he finally stopped when Harry gave Ron's shoulder a shake before saying..

"RON,shut up... Listen...I.AM.NOT.GAY!" The seriousness of Ron's face made him laughed; a huge relief was felt by Harry. _So he didn't know. __Im__ saved!_

"But??? Why... Hey! Which straight guy in the right mind would ask that kind of question? I mean, gosh Harry.. " Ron said, irritated.

"Hahaha!! Well, I'm not ok.. I just wanted.. I just wanted to ask for some advice on girls.." Harry said,carefully choosing his words these time.

"Sheesh..And I thought.Damn. Don't ever do that to me again." Ron said, clearly mortified with the experience.

" Well, it's good to know that you readily believed that I'm one though" Harry said sarcastically.

Ron gave a laugh this time and continued his meal, before pointing out to Harry with his fork.

"Just so you know, I had the perfect candidate on my mind for ya if you're still intent on finding the perfect .. ahem.. "girl" for ya.." Ron said, a twinkle in his eyes.

"Oh yeah.. Who?"

"Lockhart of course," Ron chuckled and he ducked before Harry could finally find some use for his carrots and peas on his plate.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Hermione was in her room, laying on her stomach as she chewed on the end of the pencil, thinking of what to write next in her tiny secret book of hers. It was just a simple blue notebook, the kind of cheap notebook you can get from a Muggle bookstore but to Hermione, it was something that was special to her. A book that kept her inner most thoughts and dreams. No, it wasn't your typical school girl/girl- next- door kind of diary. No poems, no drawings of hearts on the corners of the pages. Just simple writings of how Hermione truly felt and wanted to express that wasn't mushy and lovey-dovey. Yup. That was what she was. A logical and practical person,Hermione said to herself.

Her thoughts went immediately to a certain redhead. A certain redhead that has been invading her dreams all these while.Yes,she knew he was the one for her. _How can you be so sure?_ _Because my name's Hermione Granger and I am never wrong because as someone once said, I am an insufferable know-it-all,_ she muttered to herself. Giving a small groan, she turned her body and stared up the ceiling of her dorm room. Now that most of the girls had gone home for the holidays, it was just Ginny and her. She looked around unsurprised to see that Ginny was still not back from her date with Dean. An unlikely couple,she thought to herself. Yeah, and that's make the two of us she thought miserably as an image of Ron crossed her mind.

Why the hell am I so into him,she often wondered silently to herself. He was insensitive unlike Harry. He wasn't that good looking as Harry and the other boys she knew in her year too.In fact, he was just this average looking lad who unfortunately has somehow managed to sneak his way past through Hermione's heart. _The keeper of the keys to her heart._ She snorted at herself. Hermione Granger?Mushy? Oh hell, the world's gonna end. She closed her book and waved her wand and the room was instantly in darkness. Attempting to clear her thoughts before going to sleep, she discovered it was hard to do so.

The sound of the creaking hinges of her room distracted her from her thoughts. Someone was attempting to enter the room as quietly as possible and sucked at doing so as she heard a crash at the corner of the room. She grinned. Typical Ginny. Back from the night of making out with Dean probably.

"Hey Gin...Back so late..." She whispered suddenly much to Ginny's surprise and shock. She was sure her roommate was asleep.

"Ahh! Oh God, you scared me,'Mione...Yeah. Dean, err. He was intent on making me stay longer if you know what i mean."

Hermione could almost see Ginny winking back at her cheekily in the darkness. Ginny. Her only close female companion besides the boys. A fresh perspective on the workings of the female mind that was so much different than hers, she immediately knew Ginny was the best friend she was looking for all these while. As smart as she was, she knew nothing beats gossiping and just talking about stuff and fads such as fashion to take her mind off other matters. She sighed.

"Ginny,can I ask you something?"

"Yea, sure 'Mione.Anything.SO shoot."

" What does it feels to be in love?"

Ginny gave a laugh. Typical Hermione.Asking her to explain stuff that can't be demonstrated as clearly as water through books and such.

"Well, it's complicated really. I mean, I don't really think I'm the right person for you to be asking this question. With Dean..and the flings before him.. I mean, to me.. I don't think it's the real love we are suppose to be looking out for. Anyway, there's no real gauge of what real love is. You just... You just feel right with the person. You don't feel different whenever you are with the person. You know he knows what you're thinking without you even saying it. I think real love means that you somehow found that missing piece in yourself that makes you feel complete."

Hermione kept silent, listening to Ginny's words. The missing piece.

" So I guess when you're with the person you are really in love with, you are a whole complete being. Like one. 2 souls in one. Which explains...the need for sex???Right Gin?"

"Hahahahahahh! You are really thinking about it huh 'Mione?" Ginny said cheekily and she grinned.

"No! I mean... I don't really know. Just curious I guess..."

"Are you sure our international Quidditch player, Mr Viktor Krum didn't do anything naughty to you?Didn't he make you feel hot? haha!"

"Oh real funny Gin. Bringing up old news when it isn't necessary. We are just friends. It's not like that. It was never like that."

"Ya right. Just friends. You and Harry are friends. You and Dean are friends. Yet, I bet there's never this feeling of wanting to kiss any of them like you did when you're with Krum right?" Ginny said as she waved her wand to light up the darkness in order to see Hermione's reaction to her question.

It was true. She never did, Hermione wanted to admit. With Krum and Dean that is. With Harry... Hmmmm..That was a whole other matter about that..And she knew it was weird to be thinking about that now since she has let go of her very first crush for so long now. She blushed. No one ever did knew.

"Awww.And the lady blushes."Ginny said in a playful dramatic tone, playfully throwing a pillow at Hermione.

Laughing along with Ginny, she threw back her own pillow at her BFF. She knew it was time to admit it now. Afterall, what has she got to hide from her best girl friend anyway?Anyway, she was now with Dean and she bet it didn't even mattered to her at all.

"Ginny..Promise you won't kill me for what I'm telling you now ok.It's long overdue but I guess it's too small of a matter to mention anyway,"Hermione said as she played with the loose threads of her nightgown,avoiding Ginny's gaze.

"Oh really? Let me be the judge of that yeah 'Mione. So spill."

"You ready for this shocker?"

"Of course.Duh. I've known you for like ages Hermione.The most shocking news you can probably tell me is that you ain't a virgin anymore,'Mione."

"GINNY!!! What are talking about. Of course I am still one!"

"Duh. At the rate you and Ron are going, I'll be surprised that it'll ever happen."Ginny grinned at the wide-mouthed Hermione who was utterly mortified and embarrassed at her comment. Ginny giggled before attempting to soften Hermione who now seemed reluctant to tell her the news as she showed her sulky look.

"Alright.Alright! I won't tease you about Ron again. Ever again. I swear. Now, come on. Tell me. NOW! This is killing me! I mean how surprising and bad it could be..It's not as if you have a secret love affair with Snape or crush with Harry Potter or something.

The sudden change in Hermione's face was so instantaneous;even Ginny was shocked beyond belief.

"You mean.. you and Harry...Or Ewww SNAPE???!"

"NO! Of course not that ugly git..It's erm..."

"Harry???? Our Harry???"

Hermione gave a guilty nod,mouthing a sorry to the shocked Ginny.

"But when?How?Why? And now only you tell me?!"

" Hey, chill Ginny.. It's a long story, I guess..."

"And there I was... Really into Harry when my best friend was also into him at the same time. Is it? Thank God you didn't tell me 'Mione.We will probably transfigure each other to Hippogriff's droppings or something."

Hermione grinned. She explained that it was a feeling that started unexpectedly at the end of her 1st year,during the break from Hogwarts. She revealed that Harry was the 1st ever boy she ever cared about in that way, the 1st boy who made her want to write letters all day long to, the 1st boy to make her feel so in awe of due to his 2nd defeat of Voldemort that year and well, it was enough to make any little girl giddy with excitement.

"So we had the same interests even though we didn't officially knew each other then." A strange reminiscent look was upon Ginny's face.

"Yea,I supposed. But I guess, it kinda fades away, little by little without me actually knowing it though. When we became such great friends, ever since then, I've placed Harry on my "untouchable" shelf of boys."

" A weird expression for you to use considering the fact that your shelf of boys only included my probably dusty-by-now brother and a Quidditch player who didn't even make much of a move on you. He's probably gay, trying to act straight!"

"Hey! He's nice ok..."

"Yeah, but tell me... This thing with Harry.Gosh.. I didn't know! Think of all the times we could have talked about.Dreaming about kissing him..."

"Haha. Oh Ginny.. You are insatiable. You must really like kissing huh?"

"Duh... Anyway, tell me.. Don't you ever dream of kissing Harry?" Ginny asked, a curious glint in her eyes.

Hermione looked up at the million stars outside the window,thinking deeply. Yes, she actually did. More than a couple of times actually. In fact, as she remembered now, Harry was once again the 1st boy she wanted to kiss. She gave a giggle. The full impact of her delirious mini self last time was all coming back.It was all so long ago.

"Yea, I did... I really did think he was gonna be my first kiss. "

" Aww..too bad... Krum already beat him to it.." Ginny said before yawning widely. " All these talk is making me sleepy..."

Hermione gave a fake laugh that was passable as a genuine one as she remembered her conversation with Harry that afternoon.

"So we're cool then huh,Ginny?" Hermione said as she took her wand to dimmed the lights in the rooms.

A silence followed. For a moment, Hermione thought that Ginny has fallen asleep but then a soft voice of her BFF whispered back.

"Yeah. We're cool. It's not as if..." Ginny yawned again.

"Yea?"

"Not as if.. you still like him now eh... Coz..."

"Coz what?"

This time, Ginny's snores answered her. Hermione herself was getting super sleepy and without any further thought, she surrendered herself to the sleep that beckoned.

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Unknown to Hermione and Ginny, a few metres away from their room, a boy was still awake.Staring at the falling snow outside his window as he laid on his side, body towards his frosty windows. He was afraid to sleep. A lot was on his mind lately. Horcruxes to find and destroy. Thinking about his parents. And also, about the one single girl that had confused the hell out of him. He slowly got up and sat up straight in his bed. He couldn't sleep. He didn't want to have those dreams. It scared the hell out of him because he knew it could lead to something even much more serious than he had ever thought. It wasn't possible.How could he fall for Hermione after all these years???

He took out an old piece of parchment and a quill that was in his side drawer and before he knew it, he was writing. Letting the words flow out of him. A tune that he didn't know was lying within him all these while.

_It's like a quarter to three and I just can't sleep  
_

_'Cause I'm thinking of you  
_

_And all those times we cried  
_

_Did we really try?  
_

_Now I'm dreaming in blue_

__

I'll wait for love  


_I'll wait for you  
_

_I'll wait for love  
_

_I'll wait, will you?  
_

_When times are hard, I'll think of you  
_

_I'll wait for love..._

Harry looked down upon his penned writings and stared at the words,unable to comprehend what's happening to him. Her image once again crossed his mind and he sighed. It was no use fighting it.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

NExt chapter will be much more interesting. I promise. A lot of action and finally some interaction between H/HR and Surprise! between H/Ginny too.. Well well well, Ron will have a lot to deal in the next chapter.. And hey, Christmas is coming up real soon too.. SO yikes! I better finish up this story fast...

Heheheheh!! Thanks for reading! Pls review!


	4. Chapter 4

**Harry's Special Xmas**

Yawns Im dead tired after writing this chapter... haha! It was actually a whole lot longer but i think this was the best I could do in about 3 hrs... I really need to know u guys opinion on how the plot of the story is going after you read this ya...

Enjoy the read... Im off to sleep now... Zzzzzz

Disclaimer: If these characters belong to me, and I'm rich as hell... I'll probably buy Daniel Radcliffe and call him as my own.. He's such a hottie...

* * *

Chapter 4:

It was mere days to Christmas and everyone left at Hogwarts was feeling very Christmas-y indeed. The corridors of Hogwarts were decked in festive colours and the Great Hall was as usual,spectacular. The huge Christmas tree, decorated with every single Christmas ornament you could ever imagine was hanging beautifully on it. The smell of the Christmas trees, the sparkle and twinkle of light that were reflected from the Christmas ornaments all added to the beauty of the Great Hall. Professor Flitwick was indeed a fantastic decorator,thought Ginny as she walked towards her usual seat for breakfast. She looked around for Dean who was supposed to be saving her a seat but there was no sight of him except for ... She grinned. A messy raven haired boy was eating his porridge quietly as he stopped occasionally to write on a piece of parchment. It was the perfect cue for Ginny to disturb this old flame of hers.

"BOO!" She said loudly into Harry's ears before sitting herself down next to him. As expected, the poor boy was so shocked that he coughed out the porridge from his mouth, splattering a few of it on his parchment.

"Jesus... Ginny!" Harry coughed as Ginny handed him a goblet of pumpkin juice. He gulped it down as Ginny giggled at the sight of him.

" Haha! Served you right! Mum always said never to eat and write at the same time...Look, let me clean up your parchment for ya..."

Before Ginny could reach it, Harry immediately grabbed it, a panic stricken look on his face. "NO. It's alright.It's ok. It's nothing really." He said quickly as he held on the parchment rather tightly, and grinned a sheepish grin to a very curious Ginny.

"Oh really... Ok... If that's the case... Hey Harry,look over there, Professor Mcgonnagal is calling out to you..." Within seconds, Harry turned to look towards the teachers' table. Big mistake.

Ginny stood on the bench and quickly snatched the parchment from Harry and before Harry could even react,she was already reading it,scanning her eyes eagerly across the parchment. The laughter in her eyes begin to turn into something that was unprecedented.

"Ginny.. Come on. Quit playing around.. That's.. That's private.."Harry said as he tried to get back the parchment. But Ginny was turning her body away from Harry and continued to read the parchment, the laughter in her eyes slowly dimming...

She slowly turned towards an embarrassed Harry and held out the parchment towards him, who immediately took back his parchment and sat down and didn't really wanted to face Ginny. He wasn't angry, just very very embarrassed..

" That was the most beautiful thing anyone could have ever written. I didn't know that you can write songs. Another addition to your repertoire." Ginny said sincerely, as she looked at Harry.

"I'd appreciate if you... sigh.. just don't tell.. Don't tell anyone.." Harry said as he finally looked at Ginny.

"Is it for someone..someone special? "

Harry didn't immediately reply. At the corner of his eyes, he saw Hermione, Dean and Ron ,walking towards their benches, talking animatedly. Hermione and Dean were laughing at Ron who unfortunately was wearing a pair of different coloured socks.

Before he could answer, Hermione plopped down next to him and ruffled his hair,making it even more messier,before greeting him and Ginny.

"Hey Harry, hey Gins...Whassup.. Gosh.. I'm really hungry.. Mind if I take a bite," she said as she scooped some of Harry's porridge into her mouth.

Harry was glad to have the distraction. The last thing he wanted was Ginny to find out.

Ginny was giving a smug grin as she looked at Harry and the others. Harry groaned. No, this wasn't happening.

"Guys,listen up.. You know, I got a splendid idea. We got only 2 days left to Christmas and here we are doing nothing much. What do you feel about having a mini party for ourselves? We probably have a Christmas lunch and dinner in Hogwarts, but let's say after dinner we have our own little rendezvous? With entertainment from every single one of us of course,"she said,zeroing in on Harry. Harry shifted in his seat uncomfortably,looking away from Ginny.

"That's a brilliant idea baby! But only the few of us? Can't we invite,you know the rest?" Dean said.

"Yeah, that's like... About 8 more persons to invite anyway..." Hermione said glancing around the Great Hall.

"We can even invite some of the teachers if we want."Ron said as he nodded towards the teachers table.

"WHAT? No!"

"What for?"

"Eww..Snape in our party...I don't think so Ron."

"No way!"

"Alright,alright..Just a suggestion... no need to get nasty."

-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

The rest of the morning and afternoon was spent discussing the details of the party, who was in charge of what and who was going to hand out the invites to the other remaining Gryffindors, Ravenclaws and Hufflepuffs. No Slytherines of course, they were smarter than that.

The gang knew they could always trust Ginny to be the perfect party planner.Articulate with every single details pertaining to the party, she knew exactly the place to hold the party; the Rooms of Requirements of course. Not only it saved them time from decorating the place up, it was the perfect place to hold one hell of a party without any interference of any kind including Filtch and Snape. In the case of food and beverages, Ron and Dean were smart not to tell Hermione that they had employed the help of Dobby and his other elves friends to be their official caterer.

"Tick.Tick.Tick. Yea. The essentials of the party are all taken care of." Hermione muttered as she took a glance at the list she and Ginny had came out with. Ginny initially didn't realised they needed a list until Hermione begged her to let her come out a list for them. Harry smiled at the sight of Hermione and Ginny squabbling over it; typical Hermione. Hermione and her lists. Inseparable. He grinned at an image formed in his mind;Hermione fretting over the number of things they had to do in order to defeat Voldemort. The image of Hermione ticking off a list of Horcruxes was simply funny and morbid at the same timethat he just had to laugh.

"What's so funny Harry?" Hermione said, she said as she sat down next to him in the common, exhausted with the day's activities. Ron was grumbling in one corner about Dean and Ginny as usual. Both of them had excused themselves out of the room and Ron, being the overprotective brother he usually was,couldn't stand the fact that other people were entitled to go out with her.

"Nah,just..just thinking about you I suppose.." He said without much realization of what he had said. _Oops, too late! _Ron,on the other had given quite a queer look when he said that. _Woah.I gotta be extra careful.._

Hermione laughed and snuggled closer to her best friend. "Oh really? That's a surprise..And why are you laughing at the mere thought of me?"She folded her arms and looked at Harry, a questioning smile on her face.

_Oh shit._

"Nah, he's probably thinking of your old crush, Professor Lockhart and how to lay a big fat kiss on him!" Ron interfered, as he threw in more logs into the fireplace.

"Hey!!! I'm not!" Harry replied,irritated with Ron's answer.

"LOCKHART??Really? Since when did you have the hots for him Harry?" Hermione laughed, a sound that Harry has grown to love these past few weeks.

"Ya... I recently discovered his deepest darkest secret.." Ron said and he sat next to Harry, fluttering his eyelashes ridiculously and put his arms around Harry in a seductive way.

"Urgh.Stop it Ron.You are making puke," Harry said as he rolled his eyes and added," I am NOT GAY like that teacher of ours ok. I like girls. Period."

"Awww..too bad.. I was beginning to have the hots for ya...And you know, since we are bunking in the same room... It ain't such a bad idea...You know, I'm sexy..." Ron said in a "sexy" voice that Harry found absolutely revolting.

"Oh Ronald..." Herrmione joked.

"Oh yeah, how would you know... I bet you can't be half as sexy as I am,'Mione" Ron said in a mocking tone as he playfully flipped his imaginary locks behind, and fluttered his eyelashes. Harry couldn't control his laughter. The sight of Ron's face was too much.

_A bad idea to challenge Hermione_, he thought as he laughed at Ron's pathetic attempt of a catwalk in the middle of the common room,strutting his stuff, flipping his hair,pouting his lips and swaying his hips jerkily from side to side.

"Hey.. I can if I want to. Trust me Ronald," Hermione said as she folded her arms,angry at Ron's comment.

"Ok,come on.. So prove it then... Here... Right now..."

Harry looked at the both of them. _Oh __oh_. As much as he thought that Hermione looked very cute when she was angry, he didn't really like the idea of a full frontal battle between 2 of his closest friends.

Hermione was reluctant to answer to Ron although Harry must admit she was looking quite pissed and murderous.

"Well, Hermione.. What are we waiting for? It's just dear ol' Harry and me. Come on then. I bet you can't even do it. Never spoke to Krum in that way huh?" Ron teased as he continued swaying his hips this way and that.

The tension in the room was undeniable and Harry was quick to jump to Hermione's defences. "Cut her some slack Ron. Cut it out."

Harry glanced at Hermione. A determined look was on her face.And..She looked as if she was contemplating something. Oh – oh. This was not good.

"Very well then Ron. You want sexy. I'll show you sexy..." Hermione said with an angry look shot at Ron. She removed her elastic band that was holding up her ponytail and shook her hair this way and that ,making it become even more bushier and more ruffled; a look that made Harry gulped. An out –of- bed look that was clearly running havoc on Harry's hormones at the moment. Before Ron could even say anything, Hermione shot him another look that immediately silenced him. Harry was caught in between, literally. With Hermione right next to him and Ron right in front of him, he couldn't even go anywhere even if he wanted to.

Hermione took a big breath, cleared her throat before saying," Watch and be surprised Ronald Weasly." She said.

What happened next definitely caught Harry and Ron by surprise. Hermione grabbed hold of Harry's maroon Gryffindor's tie and pulled it forcefully towards her so that his face was merely an inch away from Hermione. Lowering her eyelids almost halfway close, she gave Harry a sexy look ,making his heartbeat pumped even faster. " I'm sorry Harry but I just gotta do this."

_Sorry?_ This was the closest kind of body contact he ever had with Hermione,not counting the dreams he had the nights before.All he could do was the moment was to keep his hands to himself.

" I think I heard Ginny speaking to Dean this way..." She leaned in closer to Harry, playfully twirled her index fingers on a single lock of Harry's hair. One palm was placed upon Harry's chest as her fingers continued to twirl his hair.

"Hey baby... You wanna go to Hogsmeade with me this weekend. We can have a little fun, if you know what I mean..." She said with an un-Hermione like voice, low and very very very sexy.Her index finger trailed a path from Harry's scar, rubbing it slowly and then moved down his nose and lingered upon his lips,tracing it carefully. Her other hand continued it's teasing journey,rubbing Harry's forearm,making Harry feel as if he had just died and gone to heaven. From the corner of her eyes she saw Ron standing,arms folded, clearly unimpressed.

_That's __it.__I__ had enough of this crap. So I'm not sexy enough for him__ hu__h, like those girls he d__ated huh_ Well well well.. He just have to find out this way then. She leaned forwards for the final kill.

With a silent prayer,she moved her face forwards and placed her lips upon Harry's, her one arm around his neck, another placed upon his chest. She merely expected the kiss to be a short and quick one but the feel of Harry's soft lips against hers was...Electrifying. And the amazing thing was that she felt Harry moved forward, putting pressure upon her lips, a delicious unexpected thrill running through her body. He was definitely kissing her back,gently and oh so softly. She pushed herself forwards too, grazing her chest against his. _Gosh. This feels really good_. She closed her eyes at the amazing feeling and felt herself surrendering to the short moment,her arms tightening bit by bit around his neck and felt herself emitting a soft moan...She wanted it to go on and go on...Oblivious to the surroundings , she felt her heart going into overdrive until...

" What are you guys doing?" Ginny's voice broke the magical moment. She opened her eyes, and untangled herself from Harry's embrace. She managed to see that Harry's eyes were half closed and she felt her heartbeat pounding in her ears. She saw Ginny and Dean at the common door, Ron open-mouthed and silent, Dean with a funny amused look upon his face and Ginny.. Ginny's face was one of shock that Hermione knew she had never ever seen before

She felt like she wanted to sink herself in the biggest black hole she could find. Tying back her ponytail, she couldn't make herself to look at Harry. Luckily, it was Dean who broke the silence.

"Errr...Anyone up for a late night of marshmallow roasting and Butterbeer?" he said nervously.

"Don't mind us. We were just playing a game, when things got out of control. Way out of control..." Ron said in a funny voice.

Not turning back to look at the others, Hermione merely kept her mouth shut, face burning with shame, and walked out of the common room, much to the surprise of everyone.

It was then that Harry finally managed to find his voice. "Wait... 'Mione...Hermione!" But she was out of the door...

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

The crackle of the fireplace accompanied Harry throughout the night as he sat by the fireplace all by himself. Thinking about the events that had just occurred that very evening. The look on Ron's face was tearing him apart yet, he knew there was something that kept bobbing up to the surface everything time he tried to think about how to talk to Ron.

_He had shared a kiss with Hermione. _

Or rather, she was the one who kissed him.

_But, duh, you kissed back..._

The feel of her lips against his was... Perfection. He didn't expect her to go as far as she did.But he wasn't complaining. He remembered the sweet taste of heaven that was Hermione's lips... Him holding her tight,her arms around him.. It was perfection.. The moment he saw Hermione leaning forward,her lips moving in onto his, he knew he couldn't resist it. He could have stopped her right there and then but he was just too...Curious and eager...He remembered the scene that occurred after the incident

--Flashback--

_Back in their dorm._

"So you must have enjoyed it huh?" Ron said as he stared Harry down.

Harry didn't want to lie to his friend but he knew honesty wasn't the best policy at the moment. He merely kept quiet, adjusting back his tie before merely giving a shrug.

" Oh come on Harry. My eyes don't lie. You clearly enjoyed that," Ron said tensely.

"You knew how I felt about her and you still went on with it..."

This time Harry couldn't take it. He knew it wasn't fair of Ron to say that.

" Look, it wasn't me who started it and you very well know it Ron. And about your feelings, how the hell am I to know what you feel? The way you treat her, kissing just about every girl who's within close proximity with you,how do you think she'd feel about that? You don't treat her right and here we are talking about how I SHOULD KNOW HOW YOU FEEL?!"

Ron's ears became red, a clear danger sign but Harry didn't feel intimidated. He just knew he had to get this straight once and for all.

"Well... I'm just figuring things out! You knew... and you stil..."

"Look Ron, I'm gonna say this once, and I'm not going to say it again. I...I... I dunnoe why but I've come to have feelings for Hermione. There. I said it. Are you happy now?!" Harry said, glaring at Ron. He knew it was harsh but he knew he couldn't take it anymore. He got a lot to deal with already and the least he could do with his life now was to solve those solvable ones first.

Without giving another thought, he merely walked out of the dorm, leaving behind a very much silent Ronald Weasly.

--Flashback--

He gave a loud groan, rubbing his temples. Why God Why could have you granted me with a normal life?

Sitting here in the common room, right on the same couch that Hermione had kissed him hours before didn't help him much. Cursing to the heavens above,he headed out of the common room. Maybe a walk in the freezing grounds will soothe out his soul.

-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Hermione was still out in the grounds. In fact she was in the Room of Requirements all by herself. She had asked for a place to hide temporarily,away from all prying eyes. And before she knew it, a normal looking door appeared right before her on the seventh storey corridor and she immediately sneaked inside.

A simple canopy bed, a large self of books greeted. Her kind of solitude. She took off her robes and when she was only wearing her underwear, she laid down on her bed.. Her mind thinking.

Thinking.. Thinking about her very 1st kiss. With Harry James Potter...

At the thought of the kiss, she found herself closing her eyes... A tingle spread from her toes to the rest of her body.. She knew it was unexpected. But still, the electrifying feel of Harry's lips against hers made her weak in the knees. Her heart started to beat faster... She closed her eyes and for the very 1st time since like forever, Harry's face emerged instead of Ron. She traced her own lips with her fingertips at the mere memory of it... Her first kiss... Who could have known it could be that explosive...

Harry's green eyes..Harry's soft perfect lips..The cheeky grin of his. And now, the feel of his sexy lips against hers... Argh!!

But she couldn't deny that something was stirred in her.. She felt hot when Harry kissed her. The kind that Ginny was always talking about...

Maybe she should stop thinking and running away.Yes, Hermione, grow up. It was just a kiss.

She took back her robes, wore it and decided that her bed was waiting for her in her dormitory. She will deal with this in the morning...

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

The incident left quite a stain the next morning. Ginny and Dean were the only ones talking in their usual seats,eyeing their friends carefully and trying their best to act normal. They were smart enough to avoid any PDA around Ron, who in fact has turned into a very irritable person overnight. Harry on the other hand was nowhere to be seen and Hermione was acting as if nothing had occurred the night before. She ate her cereal quietly,not showing any kind of response at all to Ron's stares.

In fact, she looked calm and normal. While she read the newspaper quietly while eating her cereal, Ron on the other hand, who was seated across her was struggling with something.

" Hermione..."

"Yes,"she said cooly as she finally looked at Ron, who was now,looking quite uncomfortable.

"I just... I just wanna say..."

"Yea?"

"I'm sorry for making you do that last night,I was putting pressure on you for a stupid thing and I feel bad and I wanna apologize coz I feel it wasn't appropriate and it's wrong and I know you shouldn't be doing that and ..." Ron rambled on,beads of perspiration on his face as he said it.

A silence followed. Hermione simply looked at the boy. She knew it was killing him to say it. But a part of her was enjoying it, surprisingly. _Serves him right._But she didn't really know what to say to Ron. She stole a glance at Ginny seated next to Ron, hoping that Ginny would help her out in the situation. Ginny saw the look and immediately stood up.

" So admit it then." Ginny intervened, as she looked at Ron, folding her arms, a smug look on her face.

"Errrr...admit what ?" a clearly nervous and embarrassed Ron said, looking at Ginny and Hermione.

"Admit that she's hot and you think she's sexy then. I mean that's why she did the whole hoopla right?"

"Err..."

"No, you don't have.." Hermione said, her cheeks turning slightly pink. She felt a little sorry for Ron who was looking so uncomfortable,it was as if he was being confronted with a thousand spiders.

"Hermione,you're hot and sexy. " Ron said suddenly, his face the same shade as his hair,his eyes not quite meeting Hermione's.

Dean whistled and Ginny clapped her brother on his back, laughing. Hermione on the other hand was so shocked with the revelation that she blinked her eyes a couple of times,not saying anything else.

"Well, took ya long enough big bro. She is and always will. And she probably think the same thing about you too if you get my drift..."Ginny said happily.

"GINNY!!!" Hermione was aghast at what Ginny had said. But Ginny as usual, being the smart witch that she was in these kind of matters , simply got off her seat .

"Come on,Dean...let's leave these 2 to settle their matters," Ginny said as she took hold of Dean's hands and pulled him up. " We got a rocking party to plan, and I need your help in choosing the best music. Maybe you can show me some of your muggle Cds."

Ron and Hermione was left by themselves, clearly still embarrassed by each other. Hermione looked down towards her plate and continued eating, not really knowing what to say. A couple of minutes went by and surprisingly, it was Ron who spoke out first.

"You didn't have to do that yesterday. I.. I was just playing with ya. I..I... always knew you to be ...ahem...pretty."He said nervously and he bravely looked up from his breakfast and stared into Hermione's eyes.

_Was her ears deceiving __her?__Was__ that an actual compliment from Ronald __Weasly_ She looked into Ron's eyes expecting to see amusement and laughter in his eyes but there was none. There was a sincerity in his eyes that she never thought she would ever see.

Blushing, she simply smiled and continued to eat. My my... Look what she's done... Ronald Weasly has finally noticed her..._But what about her Harry? _A tiny voicie within her said...

-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Harry was staring at the landscapes around him as he stood on Hogwarts bridge, connecting the Great Hall tower to the owlery. The scenery was as usual breathtaking and it was the perfect remedy for his confused mind. He was simply thinking when suddenly someone called out to him.

"Hey Harry!' Dean Thomas called out to him. Harry turned reluctantly towards him. He resisted his urge to just ignore and rolled his eyes at Dean but he couldn't quite do so. He didn't know why but there was something about Dean that annoyed him. Ever since he dated Ginny, he was acting like a proud dickhead, having gained access to the hottest girl on Hogwarts grounds. Not that Harry was jealous or anything. His instincts were usually right and he kinda had a feeling that Dean was always fooling around with Ginny and the look that he gave her wasn't one of real affection. It was always one of desire and lust. And it made Harry angry to think that Dean was treating Ginny as a play thing.

"Hey, don't need to look so pissed.But hot night yesterday huh?" Dean teased Harry. Harry simply shrugged.

"Anyways, tomorrow's party gonna be great. Found some CDs and such. The music's gonna be great... And regarding tomorrow's performance, do you need any help? I mean Ginny said you're gonna perform a song or something... I can play the guitar and piano so.. If you need..."

'WHAT?I'm not singing!"

"Dude, you are.. It's in the itinerary that Ginny and Hermione came up with yesterday."

No, this was not what he needed at the moment.

"Come on, it's Xmas... Anyways, I bet Hermione want to see you perform after your ahem... your performance with her yesterday..." Dean laughed.

Hermione.Gosh. Hermione... After last night,all he could think about was her... Maybe he should...After all he already had a few songs he'd written about her.. And after his fight with Ron yesterday, he just gotta make his move before... the unthinkable happens...

"Alright then.."

"Atta boy, Harry! So the boy who lived is gonna be the boy who rocked the stage tomorrow!Woohoo!"

_No Dean...The boy Who Lived is __gonna__ be The boy Who Gets The Girl..._

* * *

_ Haha... So how about that??? Ron VS Harry? I was quite reluctant to have them fight in this chapter but then, i couldnt help it...So.. DING DING DING.. Let's have them boys enter the ring and let the battle begin..._

Oh ya... Ginny's got a hot scene with Harry in the next chappie...Trust me... u'll love it...

yawn I'm tired... Hey read/review... All I want for Xmas is reviews!!!


	5. Chapter 5

_**Harry's Special Xmas**_

_The delay was unprecedented. BZ with stuff.. including getting back my term's results...ahhhh!!!! Pls read... My dateline has now been changed. DUH.. so merry Xmas everyone and pls continue to read my stuff.. I think the end's coming pretty soon coz several more chappies are done.. but i just cant find the time to upload them all.. Enjoy the read.. And pls dun hate Ginny in the time to come... :P_

Disclaimer: I dont own anything...

* * *

_Chapter :5_

Hermione knew that Ron was in fact trying his best to make her laugh. She was trying to make out the joke that he was trying to tell her but for the life of her, she could not get a single thing that he was saying but instead merely nodded,a smile plastered on her face while her mind was off somewhere...

She knew she should be happy and excited at the fact that finally Ron, the boy whom she had fallen in love with all these time has finally noticed her and trying his best to act like he is in fact interested in her but ...She still cared for Harry. Very much. And as much as she was happy with the greater attention given to her by Ron, a part of her was still wondering about her other best friend,whom she had not seen since morning and it was nearing evening soon. _Maybe he ran into some trouble...Maybe he's embarrassed over what she did yesterday__ Duh__ Oh man..._

"...and that's when he said,if witches ever..."

"Have you seen Harry? "Hermione interrupted without really thinking.

"No. He's probably meeting Dumbledore...", muttered Ron bitterly much to the surprise of Hermione.

"What did you just say,Ron? Maybe he's...Maybe he needs our help somewhere... Maybe we should in fact look for him.. Maybe.."

" I told ya about 5 times already. I don't know where he is. Come on Hermione, let's just...hang out at the common room.It's Christmas Eve anyway..."Ron said, and with a little hesitation, he grabbed Hermione's hand before leading their way back to the common room,having spent their day just walking around Hogwarts,meeting and confirming the attendance of their friends and just.. being Ron and Hermione.

Hermione blushed at the sight of their clutched hands. She knew that Ron was definitely making the effort and it showed. It wasn't that she didn't really appreciate it. It was just that it was quite too sudden for her. The day before it was the same Ron who was making out with some random girl and here he was, the same Ron, acting quite different. Maybe he was just playing with her... Reluctantly, she pulled out her hands from Ron's grip and gave the excuse that she'd meet him in the common room. She'd better go and meet the clear expert in this arena. Who else but Ginny Weasly.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

"Hey, look who's on fire. First my brother... Now Harry... I won't be surprise if Dean will be under your spell too.. Heck, even if he is under your spell.. Make sure he's not UNDER you..." Ginny grinned, loving the look of shock on her best friend's face.

"GINNY! It's not like that ok...You know how I feel about Ron.. And Harry.. I mean, it was grea... Shall we not talk about it," Hermione said in exasperation as she laid on her bed.

"Oh my god.. You totally like Harry's kiss huh.. Tell me.. Was it hot.. Did you tremble.. I think I heard you moan..." Ginny laughed mischievously.

"NO!! I didn't...Did I?Ginny.. drop it!"

"Nuh- uh.. I won't til you tell me the truth.Girl to girl.I want the truth. Cross your heart and hope to die kinda thing..."

Hermione turned to look at her roommate who was seated opposite her, brushing her long mane of red hair, curiosity obviously written on her face. With a sigh, she gave in. Ginny was too good of a friend to keep secrets from.Anyway, by the looks of it,she needed help..

"Wellll... Promise me you won't kill me for this.. But... Ermm..I felt dizzy when I kissed him.It's like... this tingle that spreads throughout my body and... It's unexpected. We are friends you know...

"Yep..Close friends I know.. But close friends don't kiss like that...Close friends don't make you moan..."

"GINNY!!!!!!!!!"

"Ok ok,little miss prudish...So let's continue with your sensational kiss, that even I'm feeling a little jealous..."

"Huh... Wait. What did you say?Jealous?" Hermione said incredulously.

Ginny looked at her fingernails and avoided looking at her friend's face,not willing to answer. Hermione knew better, and threw a cushion at Ginny's face.

"Alright alright! I am.. A bit...He was my you know... and I didn't get to.. you know..."

"I see...," Hermione said, with a sudden smugness in her voice, even she was surprised.

"Well.. it was..how shall I put it..."Hermione said slowly, carefully thinking of the right words to use.

"Electrifying? Hot?

"Erm..nice.."

"Just nice???"

"Okok! It was electrifying..."

Hermione felt her face getting warmer and warmer by the second. Ginny,amused by Hermione's reaction got up and sat by the edge of Hermione's bed. She knew what was going through her friend's mind.

"Ginny, I mean, I still like Ron, a lot... And now this... Are kisses...erm...Normal kisses suppose to be that way?"

"Well, the way you put it...I have to admit, as jealous as I am... that's chemistry we're talking about..."

Hermione buried her head into her pillow. Ginny merely stroked Hermione's hair and muttered a piece of advice that was not unlike Ginny.

"Well, don't fret girl...it's just a kiss..Tomorrow's the party...You have that drop dead gorgeous dress that you bought that day and we are so gonna be the babes of the night...You are in need of a makeover,dear...To charm the socks off my brother... "

Hermione gave a reluctant smile. There was one thing that she didn't want to tell Ginny though... The fact that she was sure that Harry's heart was pounding as hard and as frantically as hers did when she placed her palm against her chest when it happened. As clueless as she was about the matters of the heart, a part of her knew that there was more to it as reluctant as she might want to admit. Closing her eyes as she laid her head on her soft pillow, she was not surprised to see those green eyes greeting her as dreams began to drift into her mind.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Ginny was writing a letter to her parents in Romania in her dormitory. Hermione was already sleeping like a baby and it was still pretty early so Ginny decided that it was best anyway to reply to her mum's letter. It was taking her longer than expected. Firstly, she wasn't into writing as much as her best friend Hermione was and secondly, she was distracted by the sound of music coming from the boy's dormitory. Hermione must be really tired,being able to sleep through the music...Giving a frustrated sigh, she threw her pen and paper aside and jumped off her bed. The guys ought to lower their volumes. It was driving her nuts.

A few hurried steps brought her towards the shut door of the boy's dorm. The sounds of a guitar... hmmm...Interesting...She opened the door of the boys' room bit by bit... Tucking her head inside quietly, she took a look inside. The sight and sounds of what greeted her broke her into a smile.

Harry was sitting on his bed, eyes closed, singing out a tune that was so melodious,it brought out goosebumps on her skin. Dean was busy strumming a guitar and Harry was just...Amazing...Ginny was surprised that Harry could even belt out tune..

_My world is closing in I'm so alone_

_The door is locked and nobody's home_

_Desire is the key that I must own_

_Emotions got me losing control_

_I'm losing control..._

The smooth tunes was enough to make Ginny swooned but what laid beyond the lyrics of the song made her teary-eyed... It was...his song... His pain...

_But I know_

_It's the way that I must live_

_Even though__It's so unclear, so unfair_

_God I know__There's a path for everyone_

_I must believe and keep holding on_

_So this was the real Harry. His life in a song... No one understanding him__ The pain that he goes through..._

_I'm wishing I was somebody else_

_This world left me all by myself_

_Now why do they keep playing with my mind_

_Trying to break me down trying to make me blind_

_But somehow, I managed to see..._

So this was the real Harry James Potter.. Sensitive, in pain and holding on for what's been destined for him.Her hero. Her saviour. Her old flame that somehow managed to make her swoon all over again at that very moment with such a voice of an angel. Closing the door quietly before heading back to her room, Ginny was lost in her own thoughts. Maybe she wasn't really as over him as she thought she was... _Nah... I've got my Dean now..._Ginny thought to herself...

As she walked back to her room,a cheeky little voice of hers sounded in her head_Besides, as jealous as she was over Hermione's kiss...Who's to say she didn't have the ability to make Harry swoon all over her? Just because I'm attached__,who's__ to say I can't do a little bit of this and that...and besides, it's Christmas... __And something interes__ting and naughty always happen on__ Christmas..._ She looked back over her shoulders,towards the boys'room and grinned. A little bit of fun won't hurt anyone...And she knew things would turn out exactly the way she would want it to be.

Ginny Weasly had the perfect plan brewed up in her head.. Ooohh.. Santa would surely knock her off from his Nice list... hehehe...

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Dont get me wrong.. I love Ginny's characteristics.. But i've always wanted her to be this naughty girl ever since the COS..lol...The scene i promised... will be coming up real soon... SO people.. do your part.. I need ideas for this... Review... :)

Peace... oh btw, i tried out the poll thingy on my user profile.. pls feel free to vote.. ya!!!

The song above that was sung by Harry is in fact the perfect song for him... Called "Holding on" by our OWN Singapore Idol,Taufik Batisah.. A great combi..Both are my idols..lol...


	6. Chapter 6

**Harry's Special Xmas**

**Heya.. One more day til the new year peepz.. Weee!!! One more day til the end of 2007.. But there's still more than one more chapter til the end of this story..Hehehe.. Wanna shoutout to the reviewers who has kindly reviewed,frogflute2,gizzer18,harryloveshermioneduh,-Vandos-Girl-,Loyd1989,ginevra-james and last but not least, my dear dear Sleepypanda.. \-winkwink-/ This chapter and the rest that follows is dedicated to u all.. This chapter was fun to write coz it's TIME TO PARTY here in Hogwarts...Will stop rambling and let you read dearies... XD**

Disclaimer: I wanna be JK rowling but i cant.sigh.. One can dream of creating such a world as fantastic as Harry Potter so.. That's what fanfiction is all about eh.. :) All belongs to her.her. her. Period.

* * *

Chapter 6:

Harry was about to sleep when he heard Ron walking into their room with Dean. They were both obviously laughing and drunk. _Trust Dean to have a dozen butterbeers at a time. But that guy was talented with the guitar.. so no complains there..._

"Hey Harry,"Ron mumbled, as he sat on the edge of Harry's bed. There was still an awkwardness between them,so much so, Dean was smart enough to excuse himself from the room,swaying so much that Harry was surprised that he managed to find the right door.

"Hey.."Harry said cautiously.. He knew this was the moment for him to apologise...

"Look..." Both of them said in unison.

Harry and Ron looked at each other, blinking a few times, each didn't know what to say next.

"Ron, I'm sorry for shouting at you like that earlier on... "

Ron kept quiet. Harry took a deep breath and continued on.

"Look, we've been mates for so long... Let's not be bitter about this and...

"Fight for the girl fair and square", Ron interrupted,eyes meeting Harry at last.

Harry was speechless. Both of them looked at each other, both aware of the words and what could be imprinted upon their friendship in the future.

"Don't Ron... We..We shouldn't let it be this way..."

"But it's the only way..."

"But..."

"Ron,

"Look Harry, you and I know what I felt about her. You and I know I've been trying and trying but somehow the jerk side of me always turns up whenever she's around, and yes, my book about "making the chicks jealous" didn't really give me the results that I wanted with Hermione..But, the thing is you knew and you ..."

"Didn't do anything til she kissed me. I wasn't gonna steal her right under your nose the way you implied it Ron. You mean a whole lot to me all these years.The same goes for Hermione..."

Ron took another gulp of butterbeer, his eyes now filling up with angst and rage. He stood up from his seat, and stood in front of Harry, his fists clenching in anger.

"Clearly she meant more to you..." Ron said angrily, his voice getting louder.

Harry couldn't stand it any longer. So taking a deep breath, and being the person that he was and what he had learned and gone through all these years, the best thing to do in this situation as sticky and complicated as this was to leave it to ...

_Fate and sacrifice._

" Ok Ron. I ..." Harry said cautiously...

"What... You are going to propose to her now and drag her away from me????!!!" Ron said, his body swaying as he pointed a shaky finger at Harry. Clearly the booze was sinking in and this wasn't a good addition to the situation at the moment.

"Ron..Listen.. Ron! She's yours. I won't do.. I won't do anything.." Harry said cautiously.

Ron shook his head as he pointed his finger towards Harry.

"You're just saying..."

"No.. Promise..Cross my heart..."

When Harry said that, a part of him felt empty but he knew it was for the best. He wasn't about to sacrifice his friendship with Ron.. He needed him. Him and Hermione. To be with him all the way til he...Til everything he has been dealing with finally fades away/

Silence followed and after a few minutes...Ron gave a weak smile towards his friend and plopped himself down onto Harry's bed.

"Thanks Harry. I knew you were...You are my best buddy.." He put his arms around Harry and without further ado, collapsed upon Harry's bed and was immediately snoring away.

_That was unexpected..._Giving a sigh, he looked at his best friend. He knew it was a painful sacrifice but... It was for the best...

Just as he was about to stand up and sleep in Ron's bed instead, Dean walked haphazardly back in,singing nonsensical things.

"Sugar... Oh..Honey honey..You are my candy girlllll... and you got me wanting you...Hey Harold...No fair... I want to sleep next to Ronald." Dean mumbled and pushing Harry aside,he collapsed beside Ron and much to Harry's amusement, wrapped his arms around Ron and was now fast asleep.

Harry went to Ron's bed, thoughts still running through his mind. A phrase kept repeating itself: _It was just a kiss. It was just a kiss. It was just a kiss._

Christmas Morning:

As usual, Christmas at Hogwarts wasn't the usual affair a Muggle might expect. Floating presents along the corridors, each making their own way to the correct recipients as the sender levitates each and every single one of the presents carefully,the wonderful Christmas lunch and dinner to expect and loads of surprises here and there for the occupants and students who were staying over for the holidays.

As for Harry, it was always a wonderful Christmas at Hogwarts. The presents, the food... The combination was already enough for him. Both of which were pretty nonexistent for him until the day he stepped into Hogwarts.

However, this Christmas, it started off with an unusual noise. A rather rude scream from Ron that awakened Harry from his dreams that have yet to subside despite his promise to his best friend the night before.

"What.. What happened?!"

Harry rubbed the sleep from his eyes and the sight that greeted him immediately made his eyes widened in shock and he immediately laughed.

Ron was standing beside Harry's bed that he had slept in. Looking rather frazzled and confused, he turned towards Harry and pointed towards Dean who was still asleep on the bed. The bed in which Ron and Dean had shared the night before. Ron looked like he was having a bad hangover from last night and simply the sight of a snuggled up Dean by his side probably caught him by shock and surprise.

"Gosh..Harry,did we... I mean.. How? All I remembered was us talking and then.. Why is he on my bed.."

"U mean, why are you BOTH on MY bed," Harry grinned, glad to hear his friend talking to him normally again.

Ron looked at Harry,looked at the sleeping Dean on Harry's bed, who Harry noticed now was only wearing his boxers. That boy must have felt uncomfortable in his robes...Giving a shrug, he merely got off Ron's bed to get his present below his bed for Ron.

Ron was still in confusion as Harry handed him the parcel.

"Merry Xmas mate."

Ron looked at Harry, and then towards Dean, muttering a thank you..

"Harry..."

"Yeah.."

"Dean and I...didn't actually do anything inappropiate last night right..I mean we were drunk..but..."

Harry raised his eyebrows.

"Errr...Not that I know of.. But you two were pretty chummy with each other before you guys came in here so God knows what you guys have been up to all these while... " Harry said in mock seriousness.

The look on Ron's face at that moment was priceless..

-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

The details of the Christmas lunch and dinner were pretty much the same as every Christmas at Hogwarts. Delicious food, Hagrid being drunk, Dumbledore being the usual chirpy and cheerful self and encouraging Professor Trelawney to lighten up,the occasional sneering look of Snape that greeted Harry and so on. What made it a little different for both Harry and Ron was that Ginny and Hermione were dressed in their prettiest dress robes and even Dean couldn't keep his hands to himself much to the anger of Ron. As for Harry, he could only mutter a polite compliment towards the both of them and was angry with himself when he felt himself getting all jittery and nervous while handing out his present towards Hermione. Not surprisingly, it was after all the 1st time since the incident he was facing Hermione face to face once again. Hermione blushed as their hands touched for one brief moment.

The highlight of the day was of course the after party and everyone couldn't wait for the dinner to end so that they could go to their shushed secret party in the Room of Requirements. As soon as Dumbledore and the other Professors bade them goodnight and a merry Christmas ( Snape was already gone before the end of the dinner. Harry and the others thought that Christmas must be the most excruciating holiday for Snape, probably because he would have to handle all the cheeriness and festive moods which clearly didn't suit well with him), all of those invited made their way to the seventh storey corridor where the Rooms of Requirement was located.

When Harry himself entered the room, he was blown away by the sheer size of the room and the extent of decorations that were provided. Streamers here and there, the occasional sightings of mistletoes on the ceilings, panelled walls, and also the sheer amount of finger foods, Butterbeer, Firewhisky...He was also quick to note that Hermione was not in sight and he faced an internal struggle whether to ask Ron where Hermione was. Deciding it was best not too, he preoccupied himself with taking a look around the room some more.

There were unsurprisingly many, many other accessories and other party requirements in the room. A karoke set for those who want to try their hand in singing live. There was even a small stage prepared for the night's performances and at the thought of that was enough to bring forward another wave of jitters for Harry.

"Hey chill mate. You will own the performances tonight. By the way,errr..Ron... I have yet to apologize for last night's..err.. misunderstanding..."

Ginny, who was hands in hands with Dean,looked confused. Harry simply grinned and mouthed "You wouldn't want to know" before walking off to another spot in the fabulous room to explore.

The party of about twenty or so were already enjoying the facilities in the room. The current favourite was a huge chocolate fondue fountain which was actually in the shape of a beautiful Veela in the middle of it, streams of chocolate flowing down the structure of her hair which was quite a sight. The seats in the room was based on a crystal like theme. Transparent, crystal and sparkling, it gave an illusion and feel as if you were sitting on a various large diamonds or sparkly large ice cubes.

As Harry scanned his eyes around the room, he bumped into the very person whom he was supposed to be currently avoiding: Hermione Granger. She had just entered the Rooms of Requirement and he turned to face the girl in front of him. Harry stood there speechless at the vision before him. Hermione was dressed in the purple dress that he saw her in, back when she was in Hogsmeade...But it was at the length that it should be, modest yet alluring at the same time. Hermione's face was made up elegantly for the night and her hair was not only so shiny and sleek, it was dressed up in a sophisticated bun, a fancy diamonte butterfly clip securing it in place that sparkled in the light. Hermione looked up shyly towards Harry as Harry stood there,simply speechless. However,the sight of Ron who was walking towards Hermione at that very moment immediately made him realised that he was in fact staring at Hermione and immediately shifted his attention to Ron.

"Hi 'Mione... Wow.. You look .. WOW!" Ron said,his eyes widening in appreciation at the sight of the girl before him.

" Hmm. The tone of surprise I see..Well, you look really good yourself... I really prefer your attire you are wearing now compared to the atrocious thing you were wearing at the Yule Ball," Hermione said as she eyed Ron from top to bottom,smiling.

"Don't remind me..Ok Harry, pardon me, but I think Hermione here deserves the 1st dance of the night."

Harry gave a reluctant smile as Ron ushered Hermione to the dance floor as the DJ( A 5th year student from Hufflepuff whom Harry couldn't recall his name) spun the first song of the night. A romantic Christmas song.. Great..._Just what I need. Romance and more romance for the night_. He stood and watched Ron put his hands on Hermione's waist and the smile upon Hermione's face was in fact making him insanely jealous...It was a bit too much for him. He turned away, going towards the only good and pleasurable thing that he was entitled to for the night; the whole tray of his favourite treacle tarts...

* * *

Poor Harry... Dun worry. he'll shine in his performance later.. I fell in love with the song he's gonna be singing.. and i think you will too.. weeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee... 

Til next time: dun worry it'll be pretty soon...


	7. Chapter 7

**Harry Special Xmas**

**I think I'm in love with Starbucks cheesecake.sorry for the randomness, but this chapter was typed in the comfy premises of Starbucks.. hehehe.. Yep, the next chapter where ahem, our sexy Harry Potter does his thing... Note to readers, just seriously imagine our Harry as the HOT Daniel Radcliffe in this scene and not some other specky skinny dude ok... hehe... It'll definitely adds on to the full effect of this chapter... LOL**

Disclaimer: I dont own all of them characters here. If I was as rich as JK rowling though, I wouldnt give a second thought in buying Rupert Grint and ask him to be my full time personal butler..wink wink lol.

* * *

Chapter 7

As Hermione danced and swayed in Ron's arm during the dance, she couldn't help but find herself slowly slipping away. Simply nodding at whatever Ron was saying, she couldn't help but find herself staring at the boy who was sitting at the side of the room. Even though there wasn't anything showing on his face, she knew something was wrong with her best friend.

As much as it felt nice being in Ron's arms, she felt herself not quite enjoying it as much as she thought she would when she saw Harry acting the way he was at the moment. Could it be that he hated her for what she did? She never did had the chance to apologize nor talk to Harry about the incident. Maybe..Just maybe... Judging by the look of things, maybe he didn't want Ron to actually suspect that he liked... No, that couldn't be true...

"Hey, lighten up.. You look as if you are thinking too much.. People aren't suppose to involve oneself with major thinking and dance at the same time..."

Hermione found herself smiling at Ron's remark . Yet, she still wanted to know why Harry was acting the way he was now.

"Ron, something's up with Harry.. He looks troubled... Do you know why?"

Ron stiffened for a fraction for a second before merely stating that the boy probably had a lot on his mind judging by the many meetings he'd had with Dumbledore lately.

Hermione looked over Ron's shoulder. Harry was now talking to Ginny who had a butterbeer held out for him...Yeah..He looks like he needed it.. She saw Ginny grinning and suddenly a stab of jealousy was felt by her, so much so she felt uncomfortable by it.

"Excuse me Ron, I need to...err.. powder my nose for a bit"

Ron raised his eyebrows but merely nodded.

-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

"Heya Harry... You look like you needed this." Ginny said kindly,handing out a butterbeer bottle towards Harry. Harry simply nodded and took it.

"By the way, you look great.. So why's the gloomy face... Nervous about your performance later."

"Yeah... A bit..."

"Don't worry... I heard you... And I am astounded that you can actually sing that well..."Ginny blurted out, laughing at the sight of Harry who choked when he heard what she said.

"WHAT?! When?"

"Haha... Last night... Don't worry you'll be great..." Ginny said as Dean called out to Harry as he set up the stage for their performance.

"Go on... The crowd's waiting... Break a leg..."Ginny said, patting him on his back.

"Thanks Ginny..."

Just as Harry's about to turn and walk towards the stage, Ginny pulled his right hand and turn him around to face her, giving a light peck upon his lips

"Good luck Mr HP.."

Harry was momentarily shocked with Ginny's reaction and instinctively turned towards the stage. Dean was busy tuning his guitar and didn't saw it and Ginny winked mischievously at Harry before urging him to go on.

Ok, That was unexpected... If Ron and Dean saw that, he would probably die a thousand deaths before he could even utter the word Voldermort.

Oh well, he needed all the luck he could get. Taking a deep breath he went up the stage,the crowd cheering on their Hogwarts champion and hero.

Dean was the one making the introduction.

"Ok you people...You guys know our homeboy here. Mr Harry Potte,r with a long list of talents.He can talk to snakes.He can save people asses from danger. He can blast things out of the way and kicks ass in DADA. He battled dragons and other stuff we could never have done... He's gonna blow up Voldie's brain one day and...

"WE KNOW DEAN!!! COME ON!"

"Alright alright!! Well, let's give it up for the man himself who, I'm sure,is ready to impress..."

Harry cleared his throat, smiling slightly. He never was comfortable whenever people mentioned what he had done all these years. Taking a deep breath as Dean began strumming the song's melody, he addressed the audience.

"Errr..Hi.. I would like to... Uh.. I would like to dedicate this song to... you guys and everyone special to me, in my heart..."Harry said with a nervous and shaky voice. He cleared his throat.He looked straight and was unprepared to find himself staring into the sheer beauty of the girl he knew he could never have... His heart thudded even faster and closing his eyes,he began singing to them, what he felt, what he thought, what he knew...

**_You'll never know what you've done for me_**

**_What your faith in me has done for my soul_**

**_And you'll never know the gift you've given me_**

**_I'll carry it with me_**

**_Through the days ahead I'll think of days before_**

**_You made me hope for something better,_**

**_And made me reach for something more_**

Hermione who has just entered the room, coming back from the ladies, was immediately mesmerized with his voice. And when his eyes connected with hers for that brief few seconds or so, she knew the inevitable has happened.

**_You were the one_**

**_Always on my side_**

**_Always standing by_**

**_Seeing me through_**

**_You were the song that always made me sing_**

**_I'm singin this for you girl_**

**_Everywhere I go I'll think of where I've been_**

**_And of the one who knew me better than anyone ever will_**

Harry was in his own world as he sang the words and memories of the previous years flashed through his mind. The whole load of barriers and troubles he had faced all these time... And there she was, right by his side,all these time, the girl he knew he couldn't have but knew maybe she was the perfect fit he had been looking for all these time.

At that moment, Harry opened his eyes,hands clutching the mic, and stared straight into Hermione's eyes. He knew that he shouldn't but he couldn't tear his eyes away from her... With a smile, he broke into the chorus of the song.

**_You taught me to run_**

**_You taught me to fly_**

**_Helped me to free the 'me' inside_**

**_Helped me hear the music of my heart_**

**_You've opened my eyes, you've opened the door_**

**_To something I've never known before_**

**_And your love is the music of my heart_**

A part of him always knew they always got on well..Too well in fact... The untouchable barrier between them has always been a matter of interest,even among the others and even published once in by that scum Rita Skeeter.. Maybe she and others saw what he didn't .. Maybe...

_**You got through when no one could reach me before**_

_**'cuz you always saw in me**_

_**All the best that I could be**_

_**It was you who set me free**_

As his song came to an end, he finally tore his eyes away from her. The applause that greeted him surprised him. Every single person in the room was whistling and clapping with all their might. Thank God no one was throwing any rubbish towards him. He motioned towards Dean to come forward, and both of them bowed.

"A stellar performance by Mr HP here.. Anyone up for another rocking performance? We have invited a surprise guest and of course, there's no wizard band hotter than our very own WEIRD SISTERS!! Hey Harry,you should think about setting your own band if your whole career thing with You-Know-Who dont work out."

Harry laughed as he bowed down once again before going back into the crowd,who were patting him on the back. He was just about to move forward towards Hermione when Ginny appeared in front of him, beaming and jumping into his arms.

"You were sensational!! You deserve this drink!" Ginny said, her eyes twinkling mischieviously.

"err.. Thanks Ginny." Harry who was thirsty drank it all in one gulp and before he could even move towards Hermione, Ginny was already pulling his hand.

"Oh, come on... You were great. Have a little fun here with me and let's dance!" Grabbing his hand, Ginny manoeuvred Harry to the dance floor as the Weird Sisters played their signature song..Students jumping around, doing the boogie... Both of them danced and about a few feet away from them were Ron and Hermione .Although, one might say, Hermione wasn't actually doing much dancing.Her eyes were zeroed in on both of them and she felt very uncomfortable at the sight of Harry and Ginny.

On the other hand, Harry was surprisingly thoroughly enjoying himself. In fact, he was surprised, that he was no longer thinking about Ron or Hermione or any other stuff. It was just...just...Ginny.. A few sparkly lights flashed before his eyes and all he saw was Ginny smiling alluringly at him... Man,she looked great tonight... She always did but tonight, she was sizzling hot. Moving her slim hips this way and that, it somehow put Harry into a spell and he danced closer with her, whirling together with her as they moved to the rhythm of the beat.

Ginny grinned at the sight of Harry who was now putting her hands of the side of her waist. She knew it was wrong, but she just couldn't resist. She just had to do it.. For the sake of... Her eyes twinkled mischieviously as she and Harry danced. She knew this was worth it...

* * *

I loved the song... i was such a big fan of NSYNC last time and this song was like the perfect H/HR song for me... XD 

Coming up.. DRAMA DRAMA DRAMA...

A little preview of what's to come:

Hmmm.. Who said this???

**_"Ginny, you have the prettiest hair. It's so shiny and it smells like strawberry and treacle tarts..."_**

**_and..._**

**_"WHAT THE BLOODY HELL IS GOING ON HERE.GET OFF MY GIRL!!!"_**

**_and..._**

**_"Was that...No.. Couldn't be.. Yes.. That's definitely HERMIONE! WHAT???? HOW????"_**

yepp.. drama.drama.drama... :P


	8. Chapter 8

**Harry's Special Xmas**

Thanks for the reviews, be it good or bad.. Really appreciate it. School has started for me.. and there's 2 more chapters to go... I've tweaked a few things here and there.. And since my grammar is as bad as usual, (no beta readers for this one and it's too late to get one anyway since it's gonna end soon) , i think my next upcoming story will be in my native language since I'm so much more comfortable writing in it. But this story, won't be re-written, changed in any way whatsoever.. I'm happy with the memories and thoughts that helped me write this story, I'm happy that some of you all want me to continue with my story. If i could i wanna kiss all of yous out there..lol..

Ok, this is it, Harry is behaving weirdly and Hermione is not happy..Hmmm... Is there something going on?

Disclaimer:You know the drill.They are not mine.

* * *

Chapter 8

Ron knew something was up with Hermione. She didn't look happy and was in fact looking quite preoccupied.

"Are you alright. You look kinda pale",Ron voiced out,concerned.

"No.. it's just..Ron, my feet are just tired perhaps..Let's take a break..." Hermione said loudly,nearly strainingher voice in doing so as the music was quite loud.

"Sure... Want me to get a drink for ya..."

"Yea, sure.. Get me a butterbeer please Ron.."

Hermione finally sat down. Her feet were in fact alright but her heart and mind wasn't. She was trying not to look at the pair who was dancing enthusiastically at the corner of the room... Harry was laughing and Ginny was all over him...Touching his arms, rubbing her body against his.. Hermione turned towards the crowd,looking for Dean but he was nowhere in sight... _That's strange..._

She fingered the hem of her dress as she watched the both of them danced closely. She knew it was nothing but she couldn't help but feel irritated Ginny when she put her arms around Harry's neck as the music became slower._That__ is not appropriate. She shouldn't be doing that... _

Ginny was whispering something apparently very funny into Harry's ears and both of them started to laugh. Hermione was not feeling alright at the moment_. God, why is it suddenly so hot in here... __Urgh__... And w__here's that Ron with my drink?__ And wh__ere's that Dean?? Shouldn't he __b__e doing an intervention to that?__ URGH!!_ Hermione noticed that her best friend was now putting her head against Harry's shoulder... A new feeling of jealousy mingling with newly formed burning anger started to develop within Hermione..

She looked around for Ron, her eyes fuming and irritation started to build up within her. _Where was Ron__? Where was Dean? Where's my drink?_ Irritated at the sight of Ginny who was being twirled playfully by Harry, Hermione tapped her foot impatiently.

Without really thinking, she grabbed a tray of Firewhisky shots from the 5th year Ravenclaw who was passing by her...

"HEY! Get your own shots..."

"SHUT UP!" Hermione snapped at the poor boy.

Hermione was really thirsty by now, anger really made her yearn for the bitter taste of the Firewhisky and the burning throaty feeling that it brought to the drinker. _( Writer's__ note: I do not drink alcohol, so I don't have 1__st__ hand experience on this. __Erm__, so maybe for any alcohol description here, it may be really __sucky__Apologies on that.)_

_Hey, you shouldn't be drinking this__ You are a __prefect__ Hermione Granger..._ A voice inside her uttered. Hermione pushed that thought away. And with one gulp, the contents in the glass were gone..

Harry was now pulling Ginny closer to his arms, his face glowing...Laughing, playful shoves... Thoroughly disgusted, angry, irritated,all rolled into one as she gulped down two more shots.. Ok, make that 3...

This was in fact her first time actually tasting Firewhisky and already the effects of it was instantaneous.. _Wooooooo__... I feel... Great_ She mumbled to herself...And at the sight of Ginny and Harry, she was tempted to take another gulp.. _Hey, this is really good..._

Her head felt weird...Light.. Very light... And, who cared where Ron was.. She was finally having fun... Another gulp... _Oh__look__, that Ginny is laughing with __Harry again..._Another gulp..._Ok, now I feel a wee bit sick_... Hermione thought to herself as the world around her got very blurry... and swirly... and... great at the same time.. Another gulp... She never did know how many shots she took.. but only remembered feeling very lightheaded but very very very energetic at the same time.. As if she could do anything..

She finally saw Ron at the left side of the room, trying his best to get through the crowd towards Hermione, carrying a small tray of some treats and two bottles of butterbeer at the same time. Being the usual klutz that he was, his attempt in juggling both clearly made him so preoccupied that he didn't notice what was going on between his sister and Harry.

But before he could even reach where Hermione was seated, something else was happening at the other end of the room...

Hermione was walking haphazardly to the side of the room where the karaoke set was...She didnt care that the band was still playing...She just wanna sing and just..HAVE FUN!!! Little did she knew, this wasn't like the normal kind of karaoke set... An enchanted one which was about to work its magic with Hermione.As soon as Hermione grabbed on the mic and stepped on the tiles of where the set was standing, the tiles underneath her silver stilettos began to shine,every single colour until the screen on the karaoke set flashed out the title of the song.. It was the perfect song that fitted her feelings and mood at the moment. She was drowsy yet she could make out the title of the song and she hiccupped and grinned. The perfect song for...She turned her body,towards the both of them and as the loud banging music began to blast out from the speakers, the spotlight was immediately upon her.. The crowd was now turning their attention towards her, and even the lead singer stopped singing...

"Hey... Hic.. This song is especially for.. Hic.. people who feel that they may be in a love triangle. The .. Hic.. jealousy...The stupid stupid insane feeling you get... It's insane..Hic... Yea.. so.. Here it goes...HIC"

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

At the same time, other things were happening. At the other corner of the room, where Ginny and Harry were, a thought crossed Ginny's mind. Ginny didn't know that Harry was that good of the dancer until that day. _That's a good sign__ Maybe he can teach that Hermione a thing or two about dancing._ She was trying to get a glimpse of Hermione in the crowd. _Where was Hermione?__ I thought she was sitting in that corner__ Where has she gone off to_ At that moment, Harry was whispering something naughty into her ear... She gasped and laughed immediately after.. _My __my__... My potion really worked huh..._

Glancing at her watch, she knew she had a mere half an hour left before her potion can really work to its fullest potential... And she wanted Hermione to see it...She gave a sigh... She knew she had to make her plan work... But how was it going to work when the target was yet in sight?? And when the lead singer stopped singing, she somehow knew something was about to happen. And she was right...

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

At the very same time, Ron was looking frantically for Hermione. He didnt even notice that the lead singer has stopped singing and the slow music has come abruptly to an end... But when he heard that very familiar voice blasting out from the speakers...Adressing the audience.,he turned towards the stage and his jaw dropped...

There, in the spotlight was Hermione.. She was holding on to the standing mic for support as her body swayed and her neat bun was now.. Long gone.. Curls here and there framed her face..Her eyes showed an intensity that Ron never knew was there...

"... here it goes..HIC.."

Hogwarts homecoming queen

She's the star in this scene

There's no way to deny she's lovely

Perfect skin, perfect hair

His eyes almost popped out as the song began and Hermione began to dance and sway her hips sexily...Hermione was definitely drunk... The beat of the song was really catchy and soon everyone was clapping to the beat, giving rapturous applause at the sight of Hermione dancing like that. Zacharias Smith who was standing beside Ron gave a loud wolf whistle,ignoring the fact that Ron was staring daggers at him when he did that.

Ginny stared at the girl who has moved to the centre of the stage. **Was that...No.. Couldn't be.. Yes.. HERMIONE! WHAT???? HOW????** Her mind was now in the frantic zone. Harry wasn't himself at the moment and well, he was too preoccupied staring at Ginny..

"Ginny, you have the prettiest hair. It's so shiny and it smells like treacle tarts..." Ginny groaned...The potion.. Yep, the potion was at its maximum potential and this wasn't the way it was supposed to be.. How???Now??? She knew she had to drag Harry away before the inevitable happened...

At that moment, Hermione belted out a tune as she pointed towards Harry and Ginny. Everyone in the room looked towards them, much to the horror of Ginny .Harry, still clueless ,was having this pathetic lovelorn look on his face as he gazed longingly into Ginny's face. Oh shit... Ginny thought as Hermione made her way towards them, as she continued singing. This wasn't the plan. This wasn't the plan at all.

Perfumed hearts everywhere

I tell myself that inside she's ugly

Maybe I'm just jealous

I can't help but hate her

Secretly I wonder if our Harry wants to date her

OH MY GOD.. The world must be coming to an end.. Hermione drunk???? And as Ginny tried to back away from Harry's cluthes and escape from Hermione that was approaching them,she knew the plan was not gonna work out at all...The risk was there she knew this all along, but this...This was ridiculous.. By the looks of it, her friendship with Hermione was definitely going down the drain.. FAST...

Hermione walked in a zig-zag manner towards the both of them, and sang in a slurry sort of way the last lines of the song... Pointing towards Harry this time... And as soon as she was face to face, she shove Ginny away...The crowd laughed, several murmurs of "Catfight!Catfight!" could be heard...Hermione shook her head and pointed her index finger into Harry's chest. Not that he showed any signs of shock of course..He was still staring and smiling away at Ginny. Clearly, under a spell,unknown to the rest of them..In any case, he looked very very pathetic really..

It's not her fault that she's so irresistible

But all the damage she's caused isn't fixable

Every twenty seconds you repeat her name

But when it comes to me you don't care

Ron looked at the drama that was enfolding. Looking back and forth from the Ginny, the unHermione-like Hermione and a very queer looking Harry who wouldn't let go of Ginny's hands despite her struggling, he knew something was very very wrong..

So objection I don't wanna be the exception

To get a bit of your attention

I love you for free and I'm not your mother

But you don't even bother

At that moment, Hermione knew the world around her was getting dimmer and dimmer and the world around her was spinning around... The image of Harry's face began to whirl. As the last few last beat of the songs, she knew she was gonna collapse..Luckily for her, Ron was right behind her when she finally let go of the mic and collapsed.

The crowd was silent for a while before a loud applause and cheers followed...Typical Hogwarts students...

Ron tried to revive Hermione by shaking her awake but the brown- eyed girl was still unconscious.

"Hermione! Hermione, baby! Are you alright????Hermione...God,get out of the way assholes!!," Ron said as he carried Hermione out of the room carefully, panic clearly written on his face. He gave an angry glare at Ginny and Harry before he went out.

Before Ginny could even react to the whole situation, Harry has grabbed her and turned her towards himself, a pathetic love-lourn look on his face.

"I am so in love with you, and I'm gonna kiss you now..."

"What?No, Harry,listen.. I..."

Ginny,who was shocked by the sudden turns of events was immediately trying to get out of his grip. Of all the moments, this just HAD TO BE THE MOMENT. With a groan, Harry's hands came around the back of her head and brought her mouth to his and the crowd whistled and cheered once more. Ginny tried to push Harry away, but instead Harry changed the slant of his kiss,toying and much to Ginny's surprise, eliciting a deep shudder from her body. Harry forced Ginny against the wall, without any care of modesty at all. Ginny was still struggling but the force of Harry's kiss was making her feel things that she was supposed to be resisting. This was not the moment. This was not the plan. She only made the potion so that Hermione would get jealous when Harry's all over Ginny under the influence of the potion and then get a move on with Harry and labelled him as hers.So that, she knew Harry would be off limits and.. and... she.. will finally able to forget about him.. But he was making it even harder to forget. As Harry's tongue sought and found hers, she was surprised that she welcomed the blazing invasion and kissed him back. By the feel and looks of things, Ginny too would have lost all inhibition and wrapped her legs around him for everyone to see. She vaguely heard someone yelling.. "Get a room!" but she was too lost too care. She ran her tongue across his teeth and inside his lips. Harry continued kissing her , with the sucking motion of his mouth and Ginny was shaken by the pleasure that this was bringing. She knew she should stop and suddenly, she felt Harry pulled away from her abruptly causing a violent curse to tear from his mouth.

Even before she struggled to catch her breath and open her eyes.. She knew what had happened.. Dean,who all these while was being in charge of getting more butterbeers from the kitchens has just entered the Rooms of Requirements, and at the display of affection that greeted him, he went ballistic.

**"WHAT THE BLOODY HELL IS GOING ON HERE.GET OFF MY GIRL!!!**

_No... __No..__ He wasn't __suppose__ to back so soon!_ Ginny groaned inwardly. This wasn't the plan!!!"

Dean had just pulled Harry off Ginny and had punched him in the stomach. Harry groaned in pain as Dean shoved him hard,so hard that Harry's glasses fell off. Yet another several punches landed upon his face and Harry could faintly taste the coppery taste of blood in his mouth.

Dean gave Harry another shove,Harry fell and was about to kick him several more times when Harry managed to grab his wand out of his left pocket and yelled "Protego". A protection spell so strong that Ginny felt the swoosh that it made, and Dean fell to the floor.

With huge heaving gasps, Dean stood up and pulled Ginny away from Harry's side and towards him.

"You're dead Potter..."

Pulling Ginny away,ignoring the gasps and murmurs around him, he dragged a reluctant Ginny out of the room, face ablaze with anger.

Harry was still laid on the floor, in obvious pain, and saw a couple of blurry images around him.Someone was pulling him up and someone handed him his glasses. Suddenly, he felt a warm sensation coming from his toes right up to his chest, several flashes of lights before his eyes and.. He felt weird... His mind felt as if a fog has been wiped out due to the welcome of rain, and suddenly, he felt..Normal.. No feelings of excessive lust, desire...But curiously enough, he can't really remember what had happened...

Limping slightly, he carefully walked out of the room, keen to avoid the stares of his schoolmates ,brushing off help from them. His head was starting to clear and he knew,somehow, by instinct that he had not been himself for the past hour or so..And as he touched the painful bruise upon his left cheek and the anger in Dean's eyes, he knew he had done something bad. Something really bad. He cursed loudly and he limped his way to the hospital wing, knowing that hell was probably waiting for him..He had an inkling of what could have happened and he didn't welcome the thought at all.

_So much for a special Xmas..._

"So i guess,party's over huh..." The lead singer of the band suddenly called out,drawing the people's attention back to the band.

Zacharias Smith wolf whistled once more and much to the laughter to everyone else in the room, Hannah Abbott muttered loudly, " This has to be the best party ever. Drama drama drama...Ay caramba.. "

* * *

XD 

not much to say here except that i'm really happy that the story is going to end soon...

About this Harry/Ginny thing and Harry/Hermione thing, I promise, it will all clear up in the next chapter..

Expect tears,arguments and laughter all at the same time..


	9. Chapter 9

**Harry's Special Xmas**

**Special thks to my new reviewer,BenPerez31.. :) Im itching to read his stories but wont start until my own story ends.. and weeeeeeeee.. it will end... One more chapter to go..**

**So we have left the dramatic scene of the Xmas party earlier on... And now... Hmm... What happened to Hermione? Ron? More importantly... Harry?? Will he get beaten up to pulp again by Dean,or worse, Ron??? Hehe.. Read on then..**

Disclaimer: They are not mine..All hers. The genius. JK Rowling.

* * *

Chapter 9:

Ron looked at the girl who was lying in the hospital bed, his heart aching at the mere sight of her. He dabbed a wet towel across the girl's forehead. Her eyes have yet to open for the past hour or so and Mdm Pompfrey said that alcohol didn't quite agree with Hermione and it would take some time for her to get better. Ron sighed. This was not the Xmas he had been wishing for the past few days. He remembered that all he wanted was to pull Hermione to one corner, and tried explaining to her what he has been hiding all these years. He just wanted the night to end with a beautiful smile from Hermione and maybe a soft kiss under the mistletoe with the girl who had captured his heart.

Yet, by the looks of things that had happened. That was not going to happen. Just as his thoughts were about to meander towards another critical issue with regards to the incident earlier on, Hermione's eyes started to flutter, opening slightly. Her lips began to move and she was uttering something so softly that Ron had to lean in to catch what she was saying...

"Where..."she said weakly.

"Hey 'Mione.. You passed out earlier on,so we're at the hospital wing now.. Do you want me to get you a glass of water..." Ron said gently, his one hand still dabbing Hermione's face.

Hermione once again fluttered her eyes close,but her lips were still uttering something so softly. Ron leaned closer to Hermione, trying his best to make out what she was trying to say.

"Harry..."

Ron's insides seemed to have frozen at the sound of that single word. He felt... There wasn't a word that fitted to describe what he was feeling at the moment.

Hermione eye's were now closed and yet, she kept saying his name...

"Harry..."

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Ginny was trying her best to calm Dean down. His face was livid and he was shouting angrily. Something that she knew she had always hated.

"And here I was trying my best to make this work,Ginny and you...and HIM!! I thought you and Him...It was never happening.. That's what you said Ginevra..."

_Yet another thing she hated_. Anyone else besides her immediate family members addressing her by her full name.

"LOOK DEAN.. It's nothing... I just wanted things with Harry and Hermione..."

"WHAT?? WANTED THEM TO WORK OUT?? NEWSFLASH Ginny!!!It's none of your business and why the heck do you care anyway?You are with me. You are mine.You belong to me. And I am shocked that you actually did that!!!"

_Yet another thing she hated,_ Ginny thought as she folded her arms in anger.

"What did you say? I'm yours??"

" Yeah, that's besides the point...You..."

"That's besides the point?? It's all about THAT point...I am not a doll that you can play with Dean. I... I'm not just a thing you can own...Well, NEWSFLASH DEAN! I am perfectly entitled to do what I want, what I think is right. Just because i'm your steady, I'm not supposed to do everything you say Dean Thomas!!!!!" She said angrily in a very pissed tone.

"Well well well... That wasn't the case last night Ginny as far as I can remember..." Dean sneered unpleasantly towards Ginny.

Ginny, horrified, with what had been said by Dean, gave him a tight slap. The sound echoed across the empty corridor in which they were both standing in.

"You bast..." Ginny said, tears forming in her eyes and before Dean could even say anything she shoved him and walked past him..

"Ginny...look..I'm .."

"Save it,Dean..We're over..." Ginny screamed over her shoulder as she ran back to their common room as fast as she could, tears running down her face.

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Harry was about to enter the Hospital Wing when he hesitated. His palm was already placed upon the door of the Hospital Wing and his heart was beating so fast and he felt as if he was confronting Vo...

"Harry..."

He turned around quickly. And much to his surprise, it was Professor Dumbledore, holding a mug full of hot chocolate with small marshmellows in it. Harry looked at him curiously. There was a knowing smile upon his face.

"Trouble Harry?"

Harry snorted. That should be tagline of his life in a movie.

Professor Dumbledore grinned when Harry did that.

"It will all work out in the future Harry.."

Harry looked at Dumbledore incredulously. Is this guy for real? Just last week, during their meeting about the Horcruxes, it sounded as if the entire fate of the wizarding world was on Harry's 16 year old shoulders and here he was, talking about everything's gonna be just fine??

Before he could even say a word, Professor Dumbledore smiled and said..

"Just look into your heart and your answers will be there. I trust your instincts Harry. What you did the past few years definitely shows that your gut feeling is always right. And it will be the same this time round Harry...Trust me on this... You don't have to worry about her. Just worry about... Getting that memory from Professor Slughorn..." Professor Dumblefore grinned yet again before he turned away and made his way back to the office, leaving a confused Harry at the door.

At that very moment, someone was opening the door. The sight that greeted him caused him to freeze in shock.

Both of them looked at each other, each trying to figure out what to say. There was an uncomfortable silence. In the distance, they could somehow hear a couple shouting. Maybe it was Ginny and Dean. Maybe it was some other couple..Who knows...

Each knew that they just had to say something.

"Look.." Harry said cautiously...

"We need to talk..." Ron continued with a nod...

* * *

I know it's short.. There's a reason for that.. Coz a lot more will be happening in the next one...

Thanks for reading...It's all gonna end soon... And a good thing too.. No more Christmas spirits to share and this should have been completed by Xmas.. :S sorry!!!

lol.

I really want to thank you guys for following up with my stories...and I hope you'll like the ending.. I know I did.. :)


	10. Chapter 10

**Harry's Special Xmas**

Hey... So this is it... The final chapter... I had fun with this story. I hope you did too,reading it... Hehe...

I guess some of you might already know how it will turn out in the end, but I hope you will read my endnotes once you completed reading this story.. :)

Disclaimer: These wonderful characters are not mine. They belong to JK Rowling. And i'm sorry to those perfectionists out there if I seem to have butchered some of the essential characteristics/traits of these characters for this story...

* * *

Chapter 10

Ginny was in her room sobbing. She had placed a locking spell on the door of her room. Wiping her tears away on her pillowcase, she thought about her fight with Dean. She wasn't the type to cry over such things. She was tough. She wasn't one to cry herself a river over break-ups and such things. But that remark.. It was too much for her to handle at the moment.

And Harry had kissed her. It was enough to bring such havoc on her hormones and feelings at the moment. Her plan had backfired horribly and she didn't know what to do next. Her intentions were quite simple and yet, she knew, even if the plan was a success, she knew a part of her would ultimately regret it.

"Admit it Ginny, you were never over him. Just, preoccupied with other guys like Dean and Michael. But you were never over him." Ginny found herself talking to herself.

"But he never paid much attention to you anyway Gin. He was always talking about Hermione and Ron and more of Hermione. In fact, he's always talking about Hermione..." Another part of her uttered.

"You just want him Ginny.. You just really WANT him... For the wrong reasons.."

Hermione's voice suddenly echoed in her mind... "You're insatiable Ginny.."

Maybe that's what I am.. she thought...

Tears flowed down her cheeks once more... She just wanted him... She didn't really understand him and his complications.She just wanted him... She wasn't there for him, not in the way that Hermione was. She wasn't the one he looked out for whenever they boarded the train to Hogwarts. She wasn't the one that was there for him all the way from day 1. She wasn't part of the golden trio. He wasn't the one whom he wrote the song for. It was her. It was her all along.

She knew her heart was breaking. But she knew it was the right thing to do. He wasn't hers. He never was in the very 1st place. Maybe fate already had his name written next to a brown-eyed girl who was currently very sick in the hospital wing and it was all because of her. Maybe it wasn't supposed to work out anyway between Harry and Ginny...

She wiped away her tears even though there was an undeniable pain ache that she was feeling at the very moment. She knew it was painful to do what she had to do but it was for the best and she never could abandon and ruin the friendship she'd had with Hermione all these while. Not even for Harry or for other guys.. She knew she was the one to put things right. And Dean.. Tears started flowing again... It was never really him in the 1st place. It had always been...

She sighed. Maybe if the heavens above wanted her to be with him, then she eventually will one day...An advice from her mother years ago echoed in her ears...

"Just leave it to fate and sacrifice Ginevra..."

"Karma is real my dears..." Trelawney's voice suddenly echoed in her ears, much to Ginny's horror. And Trelawney said she was the worst in Divination and here she was suddenly remembering her lessons at the weirdest possible moments.

Through her tears, she felt herself smiling... Maybe there was indeed some truth to that crap she had been learning all these while.

-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Harry and Ron were seated in the quiet common room. They had entered the room a few minutes ago and as expected, the others were still not back from the Christmas party. It was still pretty early actually. It was only 11.30pm and it amazed Harry that a lot of damage could be done within a short period of 3 hours. And here they were , in the wake of the damage, silent and uncomfortable as the crackle of the fireplace accompanied them.

Harry looked at Ron,whose face was looking towards the fireplace. He looked ... resigned, sad almost... And Harry somehow knew what it was about. And since they were as close as brothers, it pained him to look at his mate that way.

Just as he was about to start the conversation, Ron spoke, his eyes still on the fireplace..

" Remember you said you were never gonna take her away from me..."

Harry looked down to his sneakers, guilt and pain at the sound of his friend's voice.

" Loook...Ron..About tonight.. I don't know what happened... And I don't know why..."

"No, let me finish Harry..."

Harry shifted in his seat, flinching. He has yet to get medicine for his bruised self but at that moment, nothing hurts more than hearing the words that he was about to hear from his friend...

" I always knew that I liked her Harry. Deep inside, as insensitive as I was, as dumb as I thought I was, I somehow knew... But I never really showed her any interest... I never did, because..."

Harry looked down upon his chuffed sneakers, dreading what was to come. He didn't want their friendship to end.

"Because... I knew there was already someone else in her heart... And as much as I really hate saying this.. I think that it's you mate..."

Shocked at Ron's words, he didn't know what to say next.

"No...It was you Ron.. She said..." Harry stumbled for the right words... He knew it was equally hard for him to say this... But Ron was his mate, his buddy, his loyal friend.

"It was you all along mate. She was into you all these while and I...I ...I...just fell for her only recently..."

Ron gave a resigned sound and he finally tore his face away from the fireplace, straight into Harry's face.

"Maybe.. But, I guess..it's a little too late for me...She's already fallen for you... Hard. And as much as I may have liked her before..Or as much as she may have liked me.. Well... I think that has somehow changed..."

At that moment, someone else was coming down the stairs. Both of them looked at the figure coming down. Still dressed in her party clothes, she came down. Ginny gave a weak smile towards her brother. She saw Harry's bruised face illuminated by the light from the fireplace and guilt immediately began to seep into her.

She knew Harry couldn't possibly remember what happened in detail between them. Ron on the other hand, was looking expectantly towards her arrival in the main common room area, an undeniable question in his eyes. There was no anger in his face. Just... A look that said... " You better clear things up with me coz I'm already too tired to get angry with you or anybody else and please make it short and simple coz we'd had enough drama for the night..."

She slowly made her way to both boys, seating herself next to Ron and looked at Harry. Harry looked at her, a small reluctant smile on his face. He probably didn't want to know what actually happened and the extent of damage he had caused.

Taking a deep breath, she let it out slowly before she started.

"Harry... Ron... Before I start, I just wanna say I regret what I've done.. And I'm not proud of what I did. So, I hope both of you, will find it in your heart to forgive me..." Her heart still aching from the events of the night, she told both of them what she had wanted to tell them all along...

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Hermione groaned as she woke up from her dreamless sleep. Her head felt really heavy and her throat sore from all the puking she's gone through throughout the night. Alcohol poisoning... Urgh... She will never lay a finger on her another one of those shots again... Her body was aching and all she wanted to do was to close her eyes and go back to sleep. Just as she was about to do that, she realized that someone was snoring very loudly across her. She opened one eyelid very reluctantly. That someone was snoring very loudly and it was annoying her tremendously. She felt like using the "Silencio" charm on the figure but somehow she couldn't quite muster the energy to grab her wand that was lying on her bedside table. Another snore hit her again. She tried covering her ears with her pillow...

But suddenly something clicked in her mind. _Wait a minute_ There was only one person she knew who could snore as loudly as a washing machine... She let go of her pillow and opened both of her eyelids this time.. Yep, she was right. And she smiled at the sight that greeted her..

He was slumped in the hospital wing's armchair cross her, head flung back, mouth slidely apart and yup, he was snoring very very very loudly. He looked very different when he was asleep without his glasses on. Innocence. Less Intense than he usually was. She smiled. But then her smile faded when she saw the bruises upon Harry's face. Large purple bruises that made her flinch. She carefully got up, her body screaming in protest but she just knew she just had to sit up and walked over to where Harry was seated.Looking at the window, she was not surprised to see the early morning rays streaming in. Carefully taking Harry's hands into hers, she sighed. She knew she drank too much yesterday and it was all because she got insanely jealous over... She sighed yet again.

She looked into Harry's face. Strangely enough, despite all the ugly bruises upon his face, her heart raced at the sight before her. Taking a finger, she traced the legendary scar upon his forehead,enjoying the feel of his skin against hers. Those green eyes hidden from her under his closed eyelids, thick lashes framing them, that messy crop of hair ... This was not supposed to happen. But it already had. Her heart ached at the sight of the bruises upon his face. Just like it always did whenever she saw Harry in trouble. Maybe it has always been there all these while.

Her fingers trailed down towards his lips... She hesitated, and then placed a soft light lingering kiss upon his lips. One last kiss...

His eyes fluttered opened slowly. Hermione gently lifted her lips away from his. She couldn't quite meet his eyes. Embarrassed at being caught,she merely let go of her grip on Harry's hand and was about to turn towards her bed when she felt him pulling her back.

"Hey... "He said gently as he pulled her down to sit by him on the armrest of the chair. Hermione could feel the intensity of his gaze upon hers. She didn't dare look into his eyes. Not after what she did...And after last night... Even though she was really drunk, she had bits and pieces of what occurred the night before and much to her regret, she knew it wasn't a pretty sight. Not a pretty sight at all...

She felt Harry take her hands into his and she knew he wanted her to look him in the eyes. But somehow she couldn't. She knew she was falling for the wrong guy... She still had feelings for Ron.. But this new budding feeling towards Harry had hit her so fast and hard, it made her dizzy just thinking about it. And here he was right by her side and she felt her stomach muscles clenching and her palms all sweaty.. And she thought that only occurred during her exams.

"Hey... Look at me...Please 'Mione..."he whispered softly into her ears...

She knew she should, but she was scared too... It was wrong to fall for Harry, and she knew she won't pull through any emotional crisis if anything happened to their friendship. It was just too precious... And Ron... She still loved him...But this new feeling with Harry... She shouldn't be doing this...A tear fell from her eyes.

" Hermione...Please... Don't..Don't..Don't cry..."

"I'm sorry Harry, but... I just can't fall in love with you..." She said, as tears flowed freely from her eyes...

It cut Harry like a knife when he heard those words past those lips of hers. He lifted her chin, forcing her to look into his eyes... And when her brown ones finally did, she was shocked to see her reflection in his eyes which were filled with tears...At the sight, she couldn't contained her tears no more...

"Why... Hermione... Why not? Please... I... I'm already in love with you..."

She lowered her eyes and her soft sobs filled the room as Harry hugged her tight, and it broke Hermione's heart feeling his body shaking with each of her sob. She held on him tight, and she felt him stroking her hair and she was sure he was crying too...

Suddenly she heard him whispering something into her ears. Through her tears, she realised that he was softly singing to her...

_I am always thinking of you_

_In my sleepless solitude night after night_

_If it's wrong to love you_

_Then my heart just won't let me be right_

_'Cause I've drowned in you_

_And I won't pull through_

_Without you by my side_

Hearing those words made her cry even more. She knew she should tell him that she was confused and had feelings for Ron but Harry was making it hard.. Very hard for her to do so as he continued to sing those words softly into her ears...

_Baby can you feel me_

_Imagining I'm looking in your eyes_

_I can see you clearly_

_Vividly emblazoned in my mind_

_And yet you're so far_

_Like a distant star_

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Unknown to them, Ginny was witnessing their embrace through the small opening in the Hospital Wing doors. She was about to enter the room when she heard sobbing and she stopped.Hermione was crying against Harry's shoulders and she heard what she said to the raven –haired boy...

_"I just can't fall in love with you_"

Her own tears fell from her eyes when she heard that. _Hermione, you idiot, he really does...He really does love you..._

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

"Why not? Tell me why not?"

"It's...Ron... I..I..."

"He knows Hermione.. He knows how I feel about you... And.. And he said... It was...alright.."

"Those feelings for him, and these new feelings for you.. And I'm confused Harry. Ron, he.. well.. He has been here," Hermione took Harry's hand and placed in upon her heart before continuing," for so long... "

Harry remained still in her arms, eyes still connected with hers. The consistent beat of her heart was all he could feel at the moment as Hermione's voice echoed again and again in his ears... He knew, he just had to convince her...

Taking her hand that was holding his palm against her chest,he took it and placed it upon his own chest...

"Do you feel that Hermione... That beating...It has always been beating that fast whenever I'm near you these days... Just the sight of you... Just the thought of you.. And this is what happens.."

Hermione smiled through her tears, as she felt the fast and strong pounding of Harry's heart against her palm...She didn't know what to say...

Harry took Hermione's other hand and placed it upon her chest gently,much to her surprise.He then leaned in nearer to her, his lips inches away from hers...

"Feel that Hermione? Your heart's beating as fast as mine when I'm near you..."

Hermione indeed felt it. And for the first time, she suddenly understood what he had been trying to say...

" I love you Hermione Jean Granger..."

With that he kissed her tenderly...

Hermione closed her eyes, at the touch of his lips against hers... And with her palm still placed upon Harry's chest, she felt the fast fluttering of his heartbeat... Her own heartbeat seemed to echo his very own.

She felt her own heart pounding fiercely against her ribcage and for once in her life, Hermione Granger was wrong_ I'm not an insufferable know-it-all after all_ For one thing, she didn't know that Harry and her was ever possible. A delusion. And yet here she was, in his arms, hearts pounding as one.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Ginny who was still at the door couldn't hear the exchange between them but she knew it was going to be alright..She brushed away her tears... _Thank God you've come to your senses Hermione... _With that, she walked away, her heart still aching but somehow she knew she was going to be alright... Someday, maybe... Her fate might intertwined with Harry's one day..Who knows.. Anything could happen... She shouldn't give up hope... Afterall , they were still very very young... A chorus from one of Dean's muggle cds suddenly played in her mind...

_Baby if we met each other under a different sky_

_Maybe then things would be much better between you and I_

_We could always hold on to this one special thing we __might __share_

_And then only then, you'll tell me that you really care..._

She smiled... It was gonna be ok...It was gonna be alright...someday...

_--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------_

Pulling away from Harry slightly to look up into Harry's green eyes, she whispered...

"I'm afraid..." She paused.

"Afraid of what,'Mione," he whispered against her lips.

"I'm afraid..I've fallen in love with you too, Harry James Potter..."

Harry looked down upon his Christmas angel ...

"Don't be..."

(: ------The End----- :)

* * *

Yupz, that's the end... Don't forget to read my endnotes.. It's in the next chapter i have uploaded... Thanks!

Please please please read and review... Be kind people.. it's my first complete fanfic!!! wahooO!


	11. Endnotes

Author's Last Note:

I know that I've categorised HSX under Harry and Ginny when it was in fact a H/Hr fanfiction. There are several reasons for that...

1) At first, I've intended this fanfiction to be short and sweet.. A one shot.. lol.. and somehow, I changed my mind. (Psst..Maybe that's why my 1st chapter was the best.LOL)Looking at the number of words in this entire fanfict,it's not exactly short and somehow, after reading some of the other fanfictions out there, somehow, my resolution on how this story should end changed along the way...So I'm really sorry to those who had been reading my story from the very beginning, expecting a Ginny/Harry pairing.

2) I kinda like the idea of fate and sacrifice. That's the motto and life lesson that have been taught to me since I was very young. I've ended the story this way coz I wanted Harry and Ginny to realize that fate is a very important thing..

I strongly believe in fate and I am one of those who believed that Harry and Ginny are fated to be together. That's why I had that bit about Ginny thinking about Harry when she saw the pair of them kissed.

I wanted her to think that it was not the end... Kinda like the real thing that occurred in the Harry Potter series. I don't know about you guys but the pairing between the both of them eventually was like a nice surprise for me.. .Showed me that you'll never know what life has in store for you when you knew you had already given up hope on something... I think that's what happened in the case of Ginny and Harry... :D

3) What about Ron and Hermione?

-This is the tricky bit. I'm not saying that Hermione will eventually break up with Harry,get it on with Ron, Harry eventually realises Ginny has a thing for him all this while and an immediate Harry and Ginny pairing is born... : P I sincerely wanted something different from the real stories, and I've always fancied Dan and Emma getting it on... So i guess you can put the blame on me for writing a Harry/Hermione pairing in the end... It's the end.. But duh.. it's not the kind of THE END one might expect right... Just a happy and fluffy ending...

As quoted by Jane(Angelina Jolie) in "Mr and Mrs Smith" movie, happy endings are stories which are not finished... so.. from where i've left...You can use your imaginations...lol...

If I were to use my imagination and continue the story from where I've left... I'll probably make it into a "Kuch Kuch Hota Hai" kinda story. Where Harry gets both girls.. In very different situations/circumstances.. Watch this hindi movie on Youtube. It's the perfect Harry/Hermione/Ginny love triangle story...

Maybe i will write a "Kuch Kuch Hota Hai" based Harry Potter fanfiction during my next semester break.. hmmm...

-I know guys are really competitive when it comes to girls, especially between best friends.. ( Based on personal experience) but in this case, I want Ron's trait of loyalty to really shine... He knew he was too late in showing Hermione that he had feelings for her,didn't deal it the right way, and thus, when he saw Hermione slowly slipping away from him.. He knew his chance was also slipping and he knew Harry was the reason.. Being the fiercely loyal friend that he is, I believed that in my story, this was what pushed him to do what he did in the end...

Being new to this thingy, i think my story should be classified under AU right? Or is it slightly AU? Hmmmm.. What do you think...

Lastly, thanks for reading my story. It was my first ever COMPLETE fanfict on and I gotta say, Im relieved... hehehe..

Take care, good luck and have a happy 2008!!!!


End file.
